


Winter Heart

by Imhilien



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Christmas, Drama, Eventual Romance, F/M, First Time, Fluff and Angst, Head Girl Hermione Granger, Teacher-Student Relationship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-01
Updated: 2019-08-10
Packaged: 2019-09-03 00:10:50
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 37
Words: 79,335
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16797523
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Imhilien/pseuds/Imhilien
Summary: At her last Christmas at Hogwarts, Hermione reaches out to the bitter Potions master. But matters don't go as planned. AU, post-war.  **Complete**





	1. One

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer: I don’t own anything from the Harry Potter world; J.K. Rowling does. No copyright infringement is intended; I am only borrowing these characters.
> 
> Originally published on FF.net. Written before 'Order of the Phoenix'.
> 
> Hermione is of age in this story.

In retrospect Hermione thought it had been one of the sillier things she had done. Certainly if she had thought it through the end would have been blindingly obvious. But it was done, and here outside Hogwarts, the red stain of humiliation on her cheeks would soon fade under the clear, cold winter sky.

It was the Christmas season and Hogwarts was virtually empty except for the faculty and some students who, like herself, were staying because there was one reason or another they could not go home for the holidays.

In her case her parents had fallen ill, and while it was not too serious, the doctor had advised that visitors would not be wise for a while to reduce the risk of infection. So for once, Hermione thought ruefully, she had to spend Christmas here. All she could do for now is send vials of healing potion by owl to her parents.

Snow crunched under her feet as Hermione walked along. Looking back at Hogwarts she wished she had her wizard camera with her as the castle looked like something from a fairy story with the snow covering the tops of the towers, golden light shining welcomingly from the diamond paned windows. It was the castle of Sleeping Beauty, Hermione thought in rare whimsy. But as it was winter, perhaps the dwelling of the Snow Queen was a more appropriate title.

No, she thought quietly, it could be called the home of the Snow Lord, whose heart was as icy as his cold black eyes. As she had reason to know. She bit her lip and turned away.

Snap out of it, Hermione told herself firmly. You came outside to cheer yourself up, remember? In her seven years at Hogwarts, ascending to the role of Head Girl, she had faced situations that would have alarmed others. Voldemort had died at the hands of herself and Harry.

Despite her Muggle heritage, she had immersed herself so thoroughly in the wizarding world that even the most conservative, anti-Muggle wizard would find little to criticise in her behaviour, although they would wonder at her current journey to the frozen lake for ice skating. Not many did so here besides her - Quidditch was so ingrained in wizards that any other kind of outside recreation or sport was seen as wasted time away from Qudditch practice.

But the lake had beckoned in her mind before after what had happened, offering a way to restore calm to her mind.

Reaching the lake at last, Hermione performed some stretching exercises then sat down on a nearby log. Quickly taking off her boots she laced on her precious ice skating boots of white leather that she had carried with her. Her breath left icy clouds in the air and though she was bundled up in warm clothing she was glad she had cast a spell to protect her from the ravages of the cold.

Finished, Hermione carefully stood up and making her way to the frozen lake ventured out onto the surface. At the moment the ice was thick enough to skate on, according to Hagrid. Keeping close to the edge for now Hermione skated along, back and forth, trying out some (wobbly) figure eights just for the fun of it. A smile hovered on her normally austere features as she felt her tension fade away.

Here on the ice she could be alone in peace, and experience a gracefulness in skating that she rarely felt on land. It was also less stressful than Quidditch, which she had never entirely felt comfortable playing after these years.

She hadn't seen him coming, or heard him approach, but suddenly Hermione saw Professor Snape standing by the lake, watching her. Though his expression was unreadable, it was clear to her that he wanted her to come off the ice.

For what, Hermione thought grimly as she halted and stared back at him. For him to repeat the things he had said before?

His black robes swirled around him in a breeze and he impatiently brushed a lock of his greasy black hair aside from his sallow face. Part of Hermione responded to his unspoken command and she found herself obediently skating closer to him, then stopped.

No.

A dark eyebrow was raised.

"Miss Granger?" Professor Snape questioned.

Hermione shook her head wordlessly and turning away from him skated away across the lake.

It was a mistake to have given him a Christmas present.

TBC


	2. Flashbacks

It had started innocently enough. In her early years at Hogwarts, Professor Snape was someone Hermione had resented, for he rarely had a kind word for anyone and his infrequent smiles meant trouble for the receiver of that smile.

But every year as the wheel of the year turned, the warmth of summer yielding to the chill of winter, Hermione saw that he would get crosser, his acid remarks filled with more venom. However, she also saw there was an expression of terrible bleakness in his eyes.

Every year, always at Christmas he would be this way.

Hermione had wondered and thought, keeping her thoughts to herself. Did he just hate Christmas or had something horrible happened to him once at that time?

She had been shocked to hear some chance remarks from teachers when they believed themselves alone, about Snape always being at his worse at Christmas ever since he had "caught his fiancée with someone else" at that time.

It hadn't really occurred to her that he had had a romantic past, that he had loved and been loved in return. But not loved enough apparently. How anguished he must have felt, Hermione had thought in surprised sympathy. No wonder he hated Christmas.

By the time she had realised why she was so sympathetic towards Professor Snape it was too late - she was half way to losing her heart to her irritable, brilliant, silky-voiced Potions teacher.

Abashed, Hermione had nevertheless kept quiet. Besides, whenever he looked at her nowadays it was with an irritable frown as if he found her personally annoying.

But this year was her last Christmas at Hogwarts and as she watched the now familiar ritual of Professor Snape retreating further into his grim shell again, Hermione had had enough.

She wanted to do something for him, something that would distract him from his pain, even if only for a little while. She would give him a Christmas present.

It had been difficult to choose something. His clothes were always the same so she couldn't give him a tie. Socks seemed a bit too personal. Finally, she settled for a Christmas cake. It would be tasteful (literally) but not too personal and the cakes came in their own designer box.

Hermione had planned to leave it anonymously on his office desk, but it hadn't turned out that way. His shadowed office had been empty and after placing her present on his desk she had turned to find Professor Snape blocking the doorway.

"Thinking of me at Christmas?" he had said mockingly, his black eyes glinting as he walked towards her. "No, I don't think so, somehow. Is this a bribe for some favour, perhaps?"

"No, it's not!" she had protested vehemently.

"Really? Then why have you given me a present, Miss Granger, if not for that?" he murmured, his dark eyebrows rising.

Hermione had been silent, words choking in her throat.

Professor Snape had then smiled and it had not been pleasant. "I'm sure the house elves will appreciate your gift," he said caustically as red faced, Hermione had rushed past him.

She had felt so humiliated. She would have never have thought of bribing him, a cruel insult considering she had never failed an exam.

She had only wanted to help.

* * * * *

Before long, Hermione was half way across the lake. She was reluctant to go back the way she came but she would have to, for she had left her boots by the lake. Would Professor Snape have stalked back to the castle by now or was he still standing by the lake, no doubt glaring in her direction?

She slowed and coasted to the left, turning so she could see back the way she came. With a sinking feeling she saw indeed Professor Snape was still where she had left him, his dark robes making him stand out against the pristine winter background. It almost felt as if he was exerting his will on her, silently commanding her to return at once.

With her characteristic stubbornness, Hermione firmly pushed the professor out of her mind. Concentrating only on her skating she skimmed back and forth, around and around on the frozen lake, the only sound the one being made by her ice skates. Her chocolate brown hair that she had plaited into a single braid flew merrily behind her and her cheeks soon grew pink from exertion.

Professor Snape watched the distant figure of the skating Hermione grudgingly, and though he was loath to admit it, with some fascination as well. There was some respect for her defiance too, though as a Gryffindor it was part and parcel of her personality anyway.

Normally he wouldn't have bestirred himself to be outside, especially at this time of year, but he had been unduly harsh before and had come to rectify it.

Unbothered by the cold thanks to a spell he continued to watch Hermione, though in his treacherous mind her brown braid changed to warm gold. His mouth twisted bitterly. He would not think of Clara, his former fiancée… refused to think of her… but at Christmas, (that damnable feel-good season) memories intruded of her smile, her lustrous blue eyes and her amused laughter when he had found her in bed with her lover on Christmas Eve.

He gritted his teeth and forced those memories aside, focussing again on Hermione. He had been so sure that Hermione's gift had been a way for him to look upon her favourably, until he had looked more closely and realised that if he played his cards right, Hermione had the potential to become an amusing diversion.

He smiled coolly to himself and waited for her to return.

TBC


	3. An Apology?

Hermione refused to show any apprehension on her face when she eventually skated back to the edge of the lake, surprised that Professor Snape had continued to wait for her. But then again, he had a stubborn nature so perhaps it wasn't that surprising.

She glided to a stop and then cautiously made her way to the log where she had left her boots. Professor Snape was sitting on the other end of the log, looking as though this was something he did every day.

His expression was sardonic but he made no move to hinder or help, nor did he speak as Hermione sat, unlaced her skates and put her boots back on. She was acutely aware of his nearby presence and wondered if he felt this odd chemistry between them which, when she thought about it, had been there for a while.

When she had her boots on she heard him say dryly, "Now that you've proven you can skate - though only adequately - will you listen to me?"

Seething inside, Hermione looked at him coolly. This wasn't the classroom and she wasn't in a mood to be too polite. 

"What do you want, sir?"

He gave her a look that could mean anything. 

"I did not thank you properly for your Christmas gift, Miss Granger."

"Oh, I thought it was a bribe," Hermione said lightly, refusing to make it easy for him.

"If it had been a bribe you would have left a name tag on the cake," Professor Snape said calmly, "and you had planned to leave it anonymously, didn't you? I daresay the cake will not do anything for my waistline, but I will take pleasure in eating it anyway."

The truth be told, part of him was touched by her gesture. Few people gave him Christmas presents (though Dumbledore always gave him a bottle of the finest elf made wine from his own personal cellar). It wasn't something Severus encouraged, for then he would be obliged to give something back.

Only Hermione had, without any thought of a gift in return. This could mean -

Watching her intently, he smiled to himself when he saw the faint flush of pink on her cheeks. It would seem that she had feelings for him, a crush perhaps. This would certainly make things easier when persuading her to be his mistress. For only a little while, of course. 

Liaisons had not been allowed between teachers and students, but now the unofficial policy of the Ministry of Magic (who since the war, were eager to see more babies born of wizard parents) was that if the student was over 18 and in her last year, with no coercion involved – and they were discrete - then there would be no reprimands.

Professor Black, as Severus knew well, had taken advantage of that and had married a pretty Ravenclaw once she had completed her education. She had recently given birth to twins and Sirius would show off the numerous baby photos to anyone who breathed.

He did not feel any of that love rubbish for Hermione of course, only an unwelcome desire that had started to affect him at times in the last year whenever he saw Hermione. What was equally unwelcome was the odd sense of connection to her - hadn't he learnt anything from Clara? Love and connection to a woman only led to betrayal and despair.

But he would be kind to Hermione in his own way, for he could be kind when it suited him. He would make sure things were mutually satisfying (and have a pleasant Christmas season for once), and then when he had had enough of her he would give her a generous parting gift.

Taken aback at his apology, Hermione felt her cheeks turn pink, to her embarrassment. It appeared he had noticed for there a tiny, amused smile appeared on his face, which served to make him look appealing in a dark, dangerous kind of way.

Stop thinking like that, she warned herself. It was one thing to have a crush on him, another to actually do something about it. Besides, it wasn't as if he felt anything for her in return. Why would he?

Telling her mind to get back on track, Hermione focussed on the main fact to hand - Professor Snape genuinely liked her present. If she could bring some small joy to him this Christmas she would think it worthwhile. Hermione did wonder if there was a way to make him smile again.

"I'm glad you like the cake, Professor," Hermione said awkwardly.

"Thank you, Miss Granger," he replied smoothly. "I have nothing to give you in return, but perhaps you would like to assist me in a potions experiment I will be running in two days time. Would 10 am suffice?"

Hermione blinked. To have the chance to assist in his experiments - many seven-year students would do anything for that privilege, despite his irritable temper.

There was no sign of her former bad mood when she looked at him with eager assent, her eyes glowing. 

"Yes, I would, Professor," she responded.

Professor Snape smiled thinly and rose smoothly to his feet. 

"Then it is settled. Now if you will excuse me, I believe I have used up my quota of time outside."

Hermione tried to smother a giggle and failed.

Professor Snape snorted, then looked at her thoughtfully before abruptly turning and walking back towards Hogwarts.

Hermione stared after his retreating form. 

Professor Snape felt unsettled and angry with himself as he returned to the castle. He had had the ideal opportunity to kiss her, but something about the shining happiness on her face had made him feel it would be wrong to do so at that time. What was wrong with him?

He shook his head impatiently. Never mind. All was not lost, and she would be coming to help him with his experiment. Events would work out just as he had planned.

TBC


	4. Snow means Snowballs

The next day dawned with another cold blue sky. As there were no lessons at this time of year, Hermione spent some time studying in the Gryffindor common room, trying to put the memory of her strange encounter with Professor Snape out of her mind.

When she eventually took a break, getting up and walking around the room to stretch her stiff limbs, she casually glanced out of a window to the grounds below. She blinked in surprise at what she saw and then she grinned. Going outside for a while wouldn't hurt, she thought as she headed towards the stairs after getting some warmer clothes on.

"Wonderful, innit?" Hagrid beamed down at her, the genial giant bundled in a thick coat.

"It's interesting," Hermione allowed, trying not to giggle as she looked at the giant snowman that had caught her attention. Hagrid had built it as tall as himself in one of the many courtyards of Hogwarts. However, most snowmen didn't have two heads with three eyes marked in each misshapen head by black pebbles.

Hagrid happily patted some more snow onto one of the heads.

"I'm sorry to hear about your parents, Hermione," he rumbled, peering down at her. "Hope they get better soon, eh?"

"Thanks," Hermione said softly. "It feels strange not to be sharing Christmas with them."

Hagrid nodded sympathetically. 

"It's no fun for a lass like you here at the moment, what with only a few students and the teachers, some more miserable than others... I shouldn't have said that."

He meant Professor Snape, thought Hermione as she gazed back at the castle pensively. She was sure of it.

Now Hagrid, who wasn't exactly the brightest of wizards, was shrewd enough to realise Hermione was about to start questioning him and perhaps meddle with things she shouldn't. Quickly patting some of the excess snow in his huge hands into a ball he gently lobbed it at Hermione's shoulder.

She nevertheless staggered and stared at Hagrid in surprise. He gazed back at her with a look of attempted innocence.

"Who did that?" he said in surprise.

Hermione put her hands on her hips and smiled. If you wanted a decent snowball fight ask Hagrid, it was said (and make sure you had your shields up!).

"That's a Gryffindor you threw a snowball at," she warned him. She murmured the charm that would set a shield around her that would deflect any snowballs that Hagrid threw with perhaps a bit too much force. Not that he would deliberately do that, for he took pains to ensure that he threw snowballs as gently as he could. But his idea of 'gentle' was often different from everyone else!

"Ooohh, scared!" Hagrid rumbled happily as they both picked up handfuls of snow. If he could cheer her up it was the least he could do.

The Potions master was the last thing on Hermione's mind as she dodged Hagrid's snowballs and flung her own at him.

"Missed!" a snow-dusted Hermione taunted as she muttered a charm that made an incoming low-flying snowball swerve up and away past her - making a soft 'splat' as it hit something.

Hagrid's face froze in sudden worry, staring past her. 

"Oops, shouldn't have done that, shouldn't have done that. Sorry, Professor. Didn't know you were there."

With a sinking feeling in her stomach, Hermione carefully dropped the snow in her hands and turned around. 

Professor Snape was standing just metres away with a cold expression on his face, snow splattered over the front of his pristine black robes.

"A snowball fight," Professor Snape sneered, carefully brushing the snow off his robes. Hermione and Hagrid carefully watched the Slytherin with barely concealed anxiety on their faces, Hermione silently wincing at the thought of the countless points Professor Snape was about to deduct from Gryffindor.

Then there was a smirk on Professor Snape's face and he lifted his arms gracefully. Two clumps of snow rose and formed themselves into snowballs. 

"Well, then," he murmured with cheerful malice.

"We're in trouble now!" Hagrid muttered to himself worriedly. It was unheard of for the professor to act this way.

When Severus had noticed Hermione slipping outside before he had rolled his eyes. Surely she wasn't going skating again?

But when the distant sound of her laughter came to his ears, the curious professor went outside, following the sound. He certainly hadn't expected to see Hermione and Hagrid throwing snowballs at each other in cheerful abandon like children.

How immature, he had thought scathingly. And at their ages, too. Surely Hermione was past that sort of behaviour? 

But as he watched Hermione as she neatly dodged another snowball, a sparkle in her eyes, he had felt an odd pang in his heart. What was this young woman doing to him?

TBC


	5. Snow Fight

If someone had told Hermione that one day she would be in a three-way snow fight with Hagrid and Professor Snape, she would have backed away from them cautiously.

At first, Hermione and Hagrid had been reluctant to include Severus in their snowball fight, but after he had raised his eyebrows at them and mocked them, well, after that they were both ready to kick ass and take names. 

And so one of the strangest snowball fights ever at Hogwarts was on.

It was a big effort for Hermione to maintain her shields at times, for the number of snowballs that Professor Snape flung her way with deadly accuracy often threatened to erode them. Hagrid didn't have shields up but that didn't bother him when snowballs splattered against him (though to be fair, Professor Snape did not throw snowballs at his head or chest). 

On the other hand, Hermione found no such fairness from the Head of Slytherin, with snowballs flung at all part of her body, a weakness in her shields being constantly sought.

On her part Hermione found it quite therapeutic to throw snowballs at the professor. It helped to make up for all the times during the years when she had borne the brunt of his acid comments, with Hermione unable to reply in kind for fear of reprisal. Of course, none of her snowballs penetrated his shields, with her missiles vaporising on impact in small showers of green and silver sparks.

Professor Snape seemed to be having a good time, Hermione noted to her surprise, for there was a look of grim enjoyment on his face which actually had some colour in it for once. True, this wasn't a way that she had hoped to cheer him up but she wasn't complaining. His black hair was a windblown tangle, with his robes rippling around his tall frame. 

A glint in his dark eyes told her that he knew she was enjoying herself perhaps *too* much when she threw snowballs at him and that retribution would be following later.

Hermione cheerfully smirked at him, throwing another snowball. Her brown hair had long since freed itself of its braid, with her face flushed with merriment. She had no idea of how appealing she looked to Severus. He had to admit to himself he was enjoying himself. Who knew that one could with this kind of childish activity?

Suddenly there was the sound of a tiny tinkling bell from Hagrid's direction and the half-giant paused, just as he was about to make another snowball.

Hermione and Professor Snape looked at him in surprise.

Hagrid smiled sheepishly, pulling a little golden bell from a side pocket. "It's time to feed me little one - I'll have to go. Squeaky eats a lot right now. It was a good match!" Nodding politely to them both he lumbered off in the direction of his hut, whistling tunelessly.

"Squeaky?” Hermione said aloud as she dropped a snowball to the ground, not sure whether to laugh or not. She had no wish to carry on the fight without Hagrid, it would be too personal with just herself and Professor Snape.

"Do not ask, Hermione, just don't," Professor Snape said in long-suffering patience to her as he in turn relinquished his snow to the ground. Then he heaved a sigh. 

“I do not know about you, but I need a rest." 

He took a step forward then with a sudden look of consternation on his face, he slipped on a patch of slushy snow and fell heavily face down on the snow. He didn't move.

"Professor!" Hermione called in alarm and made her way to the sprawled, black-clad man as fast as she could over the snow. Had he hit his head on a hidden rock she wondered, her face pale.

On reaching him she bent down and gently clasping his shoulder managed to turn him over. His face was still under its dusting of snow, his eyes closed. She had never realised how long and black his eyelashes were, a part of her mind noted. Lavender would kill for such eyelashes.

Suddenly he coughed, spitting out snow and exasperated black eyes snapped open. Hermione was relieved to see he was focussing on her face with no obvious harm.

"That was foolish of me, but I'll live," he said dryly, wiping snow off his face and accepting her hand to help him to his feet. However, by some accident or design Professor Snape pulled her hand too hard as she was helping him. She lost her balance and tumbled against him, which led to the professor lying back on the ground (face up this time) with Hermione sprawled over him.

Embarrassed, Hermione froze, trying not to look at his face or to notice how strong and reassuring his body felt under hers, feeling his heart beat strongly. Who knew that his black robes would be so soft to her touch?

His breath was warm against her neck as well.

"This is an improvement, I suppose," Professor Snape murmured in dark amusement. As Hermione blinked in surprise, wondering with slight hysteria if she was in one of her daydreams, Severus moved his arm and twining his pale, strong fingers in her hair he brought her face closer to his and kissed her.

He was actually kissing her, Hermione thought in shock and tensed, expecting his mouth to be rough.

He had intended to kiss her with the fierce passion she was stirring in him, but at the feel of her trembling, shyly hesitant body upon his he found himself kissing her softly, coaxingly. He brought his other arm around and caressed her back gently, running his fingers in curious exploration along her spine. It was obviously the right thing to do he noted with pleasure for she relaxed, returning his kisses with an awkward tenderness that he was surprised to find endearing. There was no revulsion, he was also pleased to note.

She innocently shifted her body slightly over his and his body responded, making him groan against her mouth with frustration. Despite his plan to make her his, he was surprised at how much he wanted her and not just her body. He wanted to know her heart, to see within her soul; which frightened him.

As if his cry had shattered some spell, Hermione pulled away and hastily got to her feet, her face red.

"I, I have to go. I'm sorry!" then she turned and fled back to Hogwarts, leaving him to raise himself on an elbow, staring after her with amazement. He touched his mouth carefully, feeling shaken. There was no need to be worried, he told himself. It was nerves on her part, that was all. Which was to be expected. What wasn't expected was his strong impulse to go and comfort her, to tell her she was safe with him.

No, that wasn't expected at all.

Hermione ran, and didn't stop until she was safely back in the empty Gryffindor common room. She was glad she was alone, for she would've been at a loss to explain her flushed cheeks and swollen lips. She, who was usually so pragmatic and practical in thinking, didn't know what to think.

She had liked the feeling of his arms around her and the way he kissed her. But that was the trouble - she had been surprised at the strong surge of feeling in her and unsure of how to cope, she had run away. She flushed again. Professor Snape was probably laughing at how green and inexperienced she was - running away after she had been kissed.

TBC


	6. Dinner time

It was a composed Hermione who went down to dinner that night, determined not to betray by voice or expression that anything was amiss with her.

She was feeling awkward and confused about Professor Snape, her blood seeming to sing in her veins when she remembered his kiss - no, their kiss. This was something that annoyed a part of Hermione greatly. She was used to having control over her emotions, not letting them run away with her. But here, now, she felt as if she was heading into waters as dark as Professor Snape's robes, with no guide to show her the way.

What would happen when she helped him with his experiment tomorrow? She couldn't help but wonder with shivery anticipation.

No, she knew what would happen, she told herself sternly. No doubt Professor Snape would say in irritation that what had happened was a mistake, nothing more. She would nod in agreement, and that would be the end of it. 

It would be.

Since she was spending the whole Christmas season at Hogwarts, Hermione found herself more appreciative of the effort that had been made to give Hogwarts its annual 'enchanted castle at Christmas' look as she made her way to the Great Hall.

The Fat Lady was tipsy these days from 'Christmas cheer' and the castle ghosts softly sang Christmas carols as they drifted along corridors - although Filch and the Slytherin ghost could be heard most nights bellowing crude renditions of carols near the forest.

Classrooms were filled with decorations that had been hand-made by the younger students, though not surprisingly Professor Snape had refused such 'sentimental Christmas rubbish' in his dungeons.

The moving staircases had been draped with holly and mistletoe, with the scent of pine filling the air from the numerous Christmas trees throughout the castle, especially in the Great Hall with its twelve Christmas trees.

At the moment there was only one table set in front of the head table for the few people in the castle; the faculty and four other students. They consisted of two shy Hufflepuff first years, a Ravenclaw seventh year who nodded at Hermione as she arrived at the table and a third year Slytherin who was giving the Christmas decorations an irritated look.

She felt Professor Snape's eyes watching her, but she refused to look at him again after a brief, searing glance from him. To be honest, she was flattered by his attraction to her but she felt with her witch senses as though other, darker things were going on inside his head at the moment. Not just his memories of his deceitful fiancée of course, but as if he was playing some sort of game. And that she was a pawn.

The conversation was varied throughout the dinner, McGonagall was discussing Christmas punch recipes with Sprout, while Hermione discussed levitation spells with Lavinia, the Ravenclaw student. The Slytherin student made faces at the Hufflepuffs when the teachers weren't looking.

To Hermione's surprise, Professor Black caught her eye at one point and gave her a brief, thoughtful look that had some concern in it. She wondered what was on his mind. The darkly handsome Sirius Black was one of the most popular teachers in Hogwarts, having been reinstated after having his name cleared. Hermione remembered how furious Professor Snape had been when that had happened, how doubly furious he had become when Sirius was given the position of Defence Against the Dark Arts, which Snape had coveted for many years. No student had dared to put a step out of line in Potions for months after.

At one point Dumbledore rose to his feet and tapped his glass, the sound of the clear chime drawing all eyes towards him. He smiled kindly at them all, putting his hand to his mouth at one point to conceal a small belch.

"I'm afraid that some urgent business has come up that requires the presence of myself and Professor McGonagall for the next couple of days. In light of this, I have appointed Professor Snape to be Headmaster on a temporary basis in our absence."

Professor Snape smiled coolly and inclined his head smoothly in acceptance. 

"Thank you, I shall endeavour to keep things under control," he said.

The Slytherin student preened, while the Hufflepuff students wore expressions of worry. Lavinia muttered "Great!" beside Hermione.

Severus had to admit to himself that this Christmas was turning out to be more enjoyable than most. He was pleased that Dumbledore had appointed him the (temporary) title of Headmaster. Certainly you could count on one hand the number of Slytherins who had ever been Headmaster as usually the role went to glory-seeking Gryffindors or sharp-minded Ravenclaws.

It was a shame that the rest of the school wasn't present to witness his ascendance, but the glower that Sirius had given him helped to balance matters in a satisfactory way. And then there was Hermione… he was pleased, he told himself, that she had been responsive to his kisses before, ignoring the fluttering lurch his heart gave as he glanced across at her. Her face, as it had been for most of the dinner, was averted from him.

In the cold light of day he knew he wasn't much to look at. Clara had said as much to him in the end, he thought, a familiar bleak fury rising in his mind. He diverted his mind back to Hermione, considering her. Perhaps he wouldn't be so quick to discard her once he had her, after all.

Hermione wondered what kind of emergency would call the senior staff away, though clearly the other teachers were too polite to ask. Or perhaps they knew already and were unconcerned? She couldn't help thinking though that the departure of Dumbledore from Hogwarts always seemed to mean trouble was on the horizon for the castle and the people in it.

That's your paranoia talking, she scolded herself. Surely that was taking her role of Head Girl too seriously - looking for danger in dark corners that only held cobwebs and dust. Voldemort was dead, with his Death Eaters either imprisoned or fled into exile. A new era of peace had begun, the Ministry of Magic had trumpeted, and there was no reason to fear fellow wizards any more. Was there?

Feeling uneasy for some reason, Hermione quietly excused herself after dinner and left the hall for Gryffindor Tower. Dumbledore was deep in conversation with Professor Snape in regards to the duties that the Professor would be obliged to do in his absence (only a few at this time of the year). However, the dark eyes of the Slytherin observed the departure of Hermione and he smiled to himself.

Hermione was half way to Gryffindor Tower when a quiet yet urgent voice called her name from behind. Pausing and turning she saw Professor Black looking at her.

"Yes?" Hermione asked in polite curiosity.

Professor Black folded his arms across his chest and frowned at her. 

"I thought you had more sense, but maybe I was wrong."

Hermione was taken aback. 

"What do you mean?"

"What I mean is why a Gryffindor like yourself is getting involved with Snape - I saw you both before having fun in the snow. All kinds of fun, apparently!" he said tersely.

Hermione flushed, embarrassed. Professor Black had seen them? 

"Nothing's going on, and nothing will be going on," she said with weary decisiveness, though there was a brief ache inside her at the remembrance of the kiss before. It was for the best, she told herself.

Professor Black raised an eyebrow. 

"It had better not be, for your sake." Then his voice softened. "I don't want to see you hurt, and hurt is what you will be if you think that son of a bitch has any scrap of affection in that shrivelled heart of his for you."

Hermione stared back at him, not knowing what to say. 

"I just wanted him to have a happy Christmas for a change," she said softly.

Professor Black sighed and ran his hand through his hair. 

"What's happy for him is far from the definition of happiness for the likes of you and I, Miss Granger. I know with my history I'm a fine one to talk, but Snape is trouble, plain and simple. Remember that."

He nodded at her and then abruptly turned and left, leaving Hermione to think over what he had said as she went back to her room.

TBC


	7. The Experiment

The next day was heralded by a light snowfall that covered Hogwarts with a fresh, glistening layer.

Hermione stared at herself critically in her mirror. She had decided not to back out of attending Professor Snape's experiment at 10 am but was determined to appear as professional as possible. She was wearing her plainest black robe and only a bare minimum of makeup while her hair was tightly plaited, her only perfume being that of soap.

"Nothing will happen," she said aloud, thinking of it as a mantra, the warning of Sirius echoing in her mind as well. Ignoring a treacherous feeling of regret, she left her room and went down to Snape's classroom in the dungeons, chin held high.

When she opened the door cautiously and walked in, she saw the tall, darkly elegant figure of Professor Snape standing by a table laden with a variety of bubbling potions and mysterious liquids in beakers. Moving his attention away from what he was doing he gave her a brief, cool glance.

"You are a few minutes late but I shall let it pass," he said crisply.

There was nothing in his manner to indicate he was anything but the brilliant, focussed Slytherin professor he was, no hint of memory in his narrowed black eyes of the tender kisses he had given Hermione the other day.

Though she was quick to hide the flicker of disappointment in her eyes, Severus saw it and noted it without any change in his expression. You had a taste of what I can give and now you want more, he thought with a hint of dark pleasure. 

However, he found he didn't like seeing her sad, so over the next hour he showed more patience than was customary for him as he led her through the experiment. He drew her attention here, pointed out something there, noting the growing eagerness in her expression.

Many students dropped out of his Potions class as soon as they could - only those genuinely interested in Potion making attended in their last year.

When the experiment ended at last, Hermione sat down upon her stool with a sigh. Although she had enjoyed participating in it, it wasn't long until she had realised she had made a mistake in the end in coming here. Before this week it had been relatively easy to keep her feelings for the Potions master under control, but now that he had kissed and touched her, she was more acutely aware of him than she had been before.

The dark smokiness of his voice sent a new resonance through her and even just watching him in this near-empty castle threatened to do odd things to her insides. He had behaved in his usual brusque manner and that should have been a relief, but instead it threatened to make her strangely miserable. The best thing to do now would be to leave before she did something she would later regret, she told herself.

Hermione stood with the attitude of someone about to depart and made herself gaze squarely at Professor Snape. 

"Thanks for asking me to be here," she said with genuine sincerity.

There was a flicker of a smile on his sallow face as he looked at her. 

"You're welcome," he said smoothly. "I hope you will retain some of what you have learnt here."

"Yes, I will. Well, I must be leaving now," Hermione said with a determined lightness and nodding politely at him she turned and walked to the door.

She had only walked a few steps when she heard him murmur, "I have not given you permission to leave you know, Hermione."

Hermione froze.

"Tell me, why you are in such a hurry to leave?" he mused.

"I'm not in a hurry Professor, but I can't stay," Hermione hedged, not daring to turn around. Was it her imagination, or was he approaching her? 

Yes, he was.

"Again I ask, why?" he said, and Hermione was surprised to hear a faint note of wistfulness in his voice that she knew to be genuine and her resolve faltered. Behind his sarcastic manner it seemed there was someone who was lonely.

"What do you want?" Hermione dared to ask, turning her head slightly.

There was no reply, only the faint rustle of robes on the stone floor as he continued to walk closer to her. Every sense seemed to be sharper in her body as she listened.

"I think you know, my Miss-Know-It-All," Professor Snape whispered just behind her, his breath warm against her neck as he gently pressed his body against her back, wrapping her arms around her waist, enclosing her. "I want you!"

Hermione's eyes widened, for there was certainly no doubt as to the truth of that statement. She could feel the lean strength in the body against hers and smell the tantalising smell of spell ingredients that clung to him like cologne.

It felt as though the world had shrunk down to just them. She bent her head and stared down at his pale hands that rested lightly over her stomach. There were countless healed scars that ran across his hands like fine white webs and faint marks here and there from burns over the years.

She should be yelling and elbowing him hard in his chest, breaking free of him. But now, held securely in the circle of his arms she didn't want to. Lifting her hand she laid it carefully over one of his hands, which quivered slightly under her touch.

"Yes," she said softly, a joyfulness she didn't know she could feel spreading throughout her being.

There was a smile of satisfied triumph on his face that she did not see. Now she was as good as his, he thought. He moved his hands up her arms then paused, frowning in concern. Despite her capitulation to him she felt tense under his touch.

"You are tense - I can practically see your shoulder muscles knotting up!" Professor Snape said gently, to Hermione's surprise. 

"Do not be afraid of me." 

His hands moved to her shoulders and he stepped back slightly so he could gently rub them.

Hermione didn't know what to say. Every time she believed she knew how Professor Snape would act, he would do something unexpected, like this. He was the last person you would expect to know anything about massaging.

His touch was soothing and gentle as his hands deftly sought out knots in her muscles that she hadn't known were there and she felt her breathing quicken slightly.

"You don't have to do this, you know, but thanks," she said shakily.

"I will do what I want, Hermione," Severus said with dry amusement from behind her. "Does that feel good to you?" 

"Uh, yes," Hermione sighed, her body relaxing under his touch and she allowed herself to lean against him. 

"You could run a little massage business on the side," she dared to quip.

Professor Snape snorted. 

"Somehow I doubt it. Just imagine if the faculty started beating down my door asking for massages, Trelawney in the lead! No, thank you." 

Hermione snickered.

When he finished he let his hands reluctantly fall away from her, watching as she stretched her shoulders experimentally and turned around to face him.

"Thank you, that feels better," she said, smiling shyly up at him.

"I can think of ways you can thank me," he murmured, his black eyes gleaming and she came into his arms as if she had always done so. 

"Yes!" he whispered before bending his head and covering her mouth with his own. He kissed her hungrily and Hermione responded, feeling his heart beating fast against her own. She moaned and moved against him instinctively when he caressed her, while he growled and kissed her fiercely in return when her fascinated hand crept up to tug at the black buttons at his neck.

At length they paused for breath, their faces both flushed. There was a fiery glitter in his black eyes. 

"I cannot hide what I feel - I will not!" he said roughly. 

Hermione's eyes lit up. He cared for her even as she cared for him - surely he had proved it now and was about to say so. Sirius had been wrong, Hermione thought with wild relief.

Professor Snape grasped her arms and continued, his voice husky. 

"I want you to share my bed, Hermione, for I burn for you. Do this and I will treat you like a queen, I will give you all that you desire."

Delighted, Hermione couldn't believe what she was hearing. She almost felt giddy, but something was wrong. Something had to be said, to be heard by her ears. 

"You do care for me!" she said, staring intently into his dark eyes.

However, his eyes narrowed slightly at that. 

"Yes, yes, I certainly feel something for you," he said slightly impatiently, reaching for her again. Why did love have to come into this - it wasn't as if he was planning to marry her!

But in return Hermione stepped back a step, her face turning pale. 

"You, you want me, but that's all, isn't it."

TBC


	8. Reactions

Alarmed, Severus saw he was losing ground with Hermione and sought to regain it. This wasn't going as he had planned! 

"Hermione, you would want for nothing," he said, his voice low and insistent.

Hermione stared back at him, her face pale as she silently cursed herself for being a fool, feeling as if a long overdue bucket of cold water had been dashed at her face. Professor Snape wanted her, that was true - but there was no love on his part. Oh, it was tempting to say yes, she would be his mistress, but at the end of the day she would feel like a whore. 

If the love in the relationship was one-sided, then perhaps even that would turn to bitter ash in her heart.

Silently, Hermione cursed Professor Snape's fiancée, the treacherous Clara. Was blame to laid at her feet for twisting the professor's heart? Was this Clara's fault?

She realised she had spoken these last words aloud when Professor Snape's face froze. The temperature in the classroom dropped abruptly.

"Clara - you know about her?" he said slowly, his eyes narrowing and turning a flat, hard black.

Hermione bit her lip. How could she have been so careless? 

"Yes," she said hastily, "but only because I accidentally overheard a conversation about her once."

There was a look of anger and betrayal in his eyes. 

"You knew all along, didn't you, you wretched Gryffindor," he said through gritted teeth. "That is why you gave me that cake the other day - you felt sorry for me!"

"No!" Hermione protested in alarm, but he didn't listen. 

"I don't want your pity!" he snapped, looming over her. "Get out of here!"

Hermione flinched. 

"Severus, wait," she said, calling him by his first name. 

His black eyes glittered coldly and he folded his arms across his chest as if he was in pain. 

"That's 'Professor Snape' to you. And I believe I gave you an order!" he snapped. "GET OUT!"

Hermione blinked, then turned and fled the classroom before he saw the tears that were starting to run down her face. As she ran up the stairs away from the dungeons she heard the crash and tinkle of something being flung against a wall in the classroom.

Wanting the refuge of her tower, she ran along the empty corridors, the cheerful Christmas decorations hanging along the walls somehow seeming to mock her.

A shaggy dog that was resting in a patch of weak winter sunlight in an unused classroom saw the distraught student rush past. Perking up his ear he gave a questioning bark. Leaping to his feet in human form, Sirius Black then hurried out of the classroom, his messy robes flapping and a look of grim worry on his face.

Hermione paused when she heard Professor Black call her name. Hurriedly she managed to put a questioning expression on her face, but was unable to hide the misery in her brown eyes as she turned and faced him.

On reaching her he looked at her questioningly. 

"Miss Granger, what's wrong? You looked like the hounds of hell were chasing you."

"Nothing," Hermione said tersely.

Professor Black snorted. "Nothing, hell!" 

Then as he looked at her closely, noting the direction she had come from and her swollen mouth, his face grew grim. 

"You went to see Snape and he hurt you, didn't he? Why, I'll go and rip his..." 

He paused when Hermione raised her hand sharply to silence him.

"Professor Black, don't. He didn't hurt me, not in the way that you think," she said wearily. "I was a fool, that's all. But what I want to know is whether you know anything about Clara, Professor Snape's fiancée, and what she did to him. I have to know."

A refusal to tell her anything was on his lips, but then out of pity Sirius relented. He had warned her about Snape and instead she had chosen to discover the truth of his warning the hard way. Poor witch, she certainly deserved better than that. He gave a gusty sigh. 

"All right, I'll tell you what I know. But some of it isn't pretty," he warned as he led her to the empty classroom he had been in.

Once they were both seated at a table, Professor Black conjured up a gently steaming plate of potato wedges with sour cream on top to appear in front of Hermione. 

"Dig in, you look like you could do with some food right now," he said gruffly.

"Thanks," Hermione said gratefully, reaching for the hot food.

Sirius looked thoughtfully down at the desk that was covered with countless initials scratched into the wood. He idly traced an ink-stained finger over ones he had put there once as a teenager as he gathered his thoughts.

"It was before your time of course," he said slowly. "I'm only telling you what I've heard from others, including Dumbledore. After he broke away from Voldemort, Snape had a hard time fitting into life here. Well, most of it was because he was an arrogant git like he had always been, as well as the fact that hardly anyone trusted or liked him and still don't to this day."

"Then one day a woman called Clara Thistledark turns up on the doorstep of Hogwarts, looking half-dead and terrified. She was apparently a gorgeous blonde once she cleaned herself up. Well, she had been a minor Death Eater but had broken away like Snape had, seeking shelter here because she knew Dumbledore had been lenient with Snape. Snape was one of those who questioned her, but found a kindred spirit in her and she in him or so he thought."

Hermione stared at him intently. 

"I heard they were both engaged and that he found her with another man."

Professor Black grunted. 

"That's only half the story. It took a while but eventually they were inseparable and Snape asked her to marry him. At Christmas they were spending the holidays together in his home, but on Christmas Eve the whole ugly truth came out when he found her in bed with another wizard. It was all part of a plot, you see."

Hermione looked confused, shocked pity in her heart. 

"What do you mean, a plot?"

Professor Black looked grim. 

"Clara Thistledark had never left Voldemort, Hermione. She was a willing tool for his revenge on Snape, the Death Eater who left him. She took pleasure in telling Snape this before she Apparated back to her master."

"After you and Harry defeated Voldemort, Snape took great pleasure in personally making sure she was sent to Azkaban with many other Death Eaters."

"She died not long after." 

TBC


	9. The New Term

Hermione couldn't believe what she had heard. It had been bad enough to know that Clara had betrayed Professor Snape, but to discover it had all been part of a revenge plot planned by Voldemort was shocking. 

She grimly thought it was just as well that Voldemort was dead.

Thinking back, Hermione remembered that Professor Snape had implacably insisted on hunting down many of the Death Eaters himself in the aftermath of the war and she shuddered inside. Silently heartbroken and furious, he would have obviously not rested until he had caught up with Clara. No wonder that he hadn't allowed himself to love anyone since then. There would still be desire for women, but that would be all that he would permit himself to feel. 

had tried to warn her, but she hadn't listened and she had found out the truth the hard way.

But had she unthinkingly wounded Professor Snape too - were his thoughts of her now edged with malevolence and wounded pride? It would be futile though to go back to him right now and try to explain, Hermione knew, a sinking feeling inside her. 

"I feel sorry for him," she said softly. There was still a part of her that cared for him.

Professor Black sighed. "You've got a kind heart, Miss Granger. Perhaps too kind, and you thought you could do something for that greasy-haired git. But his misery didn't stop him from chewing you up and then spitting you out, did it?"

After a silent moment, Hermione nodded bleakly.

Sirius wondered what he could do to cheer her up, and then his face brightened. He rummaged through one of his voluminous pockets. 

"Have you seen the latest photos of my babies?"

Days passed. 

Hermione received welcome word from her parents that they had recovered from their illness, which cheered her to some extent. Dumbledore and Professor McGonagall returned from their excursion with Dumbledore taking back the reins of Headmaster from Professor Snape, unaware of the drama that had happened in his absence.

On the few occasions that Professor Snape ventured outside of his dungeons he presented a cold face to the world. At the rare times that he looked Hermione's way at dinner, his dark gaze passed over her as though she wasn't there, which hurt her, though she took care not to show it.

For his part, Severus' mood was one of bitterness, his heart like a wasteland. He should have known that there was another reason as to why Hermione had given him the cake, he snarled to himself as he immersed himself in magical research in his dungeons. 

How dare she feel sorry for him! 

He told himself that she would have been too sentimental to be his mistress anyway, though at times late at night he had the vague feeling he had lost something of a greater value than he had thought.

Professor Black kept an unobtrusive eye on Hermione, grimly noting the times when her face looked sad.

The rest of the students eventually returned to Hogwarts for the new term in cheerful, yelling crowds as they milled through the corridors in clean (for now) uniforms. Friends were reunited and Christmas presents were displayed and boasted about.

When Hermione greeted Harry and Ron in the in the entrance hall she found she had missed them a great deal. Harry enfolded her in an affectionate hug, then it was Ron's turn.

"Hermione! You look different, uh, wow..."

The eyes of Ron Weasley goggled appreciatively at her as though he was seeing her for the first time, and his hug had a clumsy eagerness to it. 

"I missed you, Hermione," he said earnestly as he gazed into her brown eyes.

He had a crush on her, Hermione thought in sudden insight, not knowing whether to laugh or cry. In her earlier years at Hogwarts there were times when she would have longed for Ron to notice her this way. But she did not object when Ron hesitantly looped his arm with hers as they went to the Gryffindor Tower, an amused Harry following.

In the shadows, Professor Black watched the departing Gryffindors approvingly. Good for you, Hermione, he thought. Be with Ron. Laugh with him, get that smile back on your face for you'll be safe with him.

Hermione spent the rest of the day catching up with her friends. After having the common room to herself for so long she felt unnerved at first seeing it full of laughing, jostling Gryffindors, but then she found herself welcoming the change. It meant she wasn't alone with her thoughts anymore.

Harry smiled at her from the comfort of a soft chair. 

"I'm glad to hear your parents are better," he said. "So, what did you do here by yourself - anything interesting?"

Images flashed through Hermione's head - the three-way snowfight, soft kisses from Professor Snape as they lay entwined on the snow. His harsh words when he had turned on her. The innocent, broken dreams she had had of something special between them.

"Nothing worth talking about," she said quietly.

The school slowly eased into its new term, timetables were assigned and grumbled over, with heavy textbooks for the classes eyed warily.

On Ron's part, the vague sense of something not quite right with Hermione he attributed to the worry she had gone through worrying about her parents. Some of those Muggle diseases were lethal, he knew and he cheerfully resolved to make her smile. By some strange alchemy the status of Hermione had changed in his mind from that of trusted friend to that of a new, mysterious and intriguing Other.

He told her stories of mummy-dodging from his holidays in Egypt, jokes and the latest antics of his brothers with their joke shop. Hermione noted all of his efforts with detachment, laughing when it seemed appropriate, a sober star orbited by a cheerful comet.

After a while her laughter started to become genuine.

TBC


	10. Too Late a Regret?

Going to the first Potions class of the new term was an ordeal for Hermione - she had not ventured into the dungeons since that last unnerving encounter with Professor Snape. 

But in the class, shielded to some extent by the presence of the other unsuspecting Gryffindors, Hermione found that Professor Snape did not pay her any attention at all, his black gaze sliding dismissively over her and all of the class in his usual way (apart from his Slytherins of course) that judged them to be unworthy. 

She had been put back in the box of 'random Gryffindor student to be ignored', which hurt her more than she expected.

However, only she noted that there was a new tightness to Professor Snape's pale jaw, an extra coldness to his black eyes. Because of her he was unreachable, gone, lost to a touch or smile from her forever, Hermione thought in sorrow, silently willing herself to put him out of her heart. It was all, in the end, that she could really do. Goodbye, Professor Snape, she thought.

Then Ron whispered something amusing in her ear and she turned her head slightly to him, putting a faint smile on her face. When he put his hand gently on her knee under the table, unnoticed by the others, she did not reject it. 

In the days that followed it became noticeable by many that Hermione and Ron were often seen close together and in more than a friendly way.

Sirius, who had continued to silently watch over Hermione, was relieved for her. Sitting next to Severus one day at dinner he was moved to point out in friendly malice this development to his sometime enemy. 

"Aren't those two Gryffindors a pair? Quite the lovebirds, so they say," Sirius drawled, thinking back to his own skirt-chasing days with nostalgia.

"What Gryffindors?" Severus said curtly, unwillingly dragging his mind away from a new magical formula that consumed his time these days.

"Why, Hermione Granger and Ron Weasley of course," Sirius said in bland innocence.

Severus hadn't noticed. He had (with some difficulty at first) managed to shut her completely out of his mind and sight, but now he made himself deliberately look her way and saw with a feeling of shock that Sirius was right. Ron and Hermione's heads were intimately close together at their table and worst of all, that wretched Weasley was looking at Hermione as if she hung the moon in the sky.

Sirius smirked to himself when he noted that his companions face had blanched an even paler white in shock, his wide eyes all black pupil. I hope you're enjoying seeing how quickly she got over you, you arrogant bastard, Sirius thought with malicious pleasure.

"She's got a kind heart and Weasley would never hurt her of course," Sirius went on lightly, unaware of just how deep an impact his words were having on Severus. "It's easy to make him happy - why, just look at him!"

The words unerringly stabbed like knives against the frozen shell around the heart of Severus, while feeling smug (and unaware of what his words had truly done), Sirius turned his attention back to his meal. 

But Severus only picked blindly at his food for the rest of the evening, thoughts tumbling through his head as he looked at his past behaviour concerning Hermione. It was as if he was suddenly and painfully awake.

What had he done?

Hermione had been one of the few people to ever truly give a damn for him, who had thought to make a kind gesture by giving him a cake for Christmas. She hadn't meant him any harm, and never once had she flung the knowledge she knew about Clara into his face. 

And what had he done? He had taken advantage of her kindness by cold-bloodedly setting out to seduce her into his bed. He had tried to deny any feelings of true affection towards her and in the end he had pushed her away, hurting her, with never once a genuinely tender word for her crossing his lips. Never once telling her that he felt he was falling in love with her and how anxious that knowledge had made him feel.

Severus saw what he had done, had become, and felt shame. When Ron and Hermione left the Great Hall together, it was like a slap to his face. Were they lovers already?

That night Severus dreamed of Hermione, the Gryffindor standing in front of him. She was dressed as a bride in a beautiful gown adorned with pearls and glittering crystals, her bushy hair tamed and piled high upon her head with tiny white roses interwoven with its coils. She looked so beautiful to his sight. 

Hermione’s face was composed and calm and he realised she did not see him at all.

He reached out a hand to her and whispered her name. Her eyes suddenly focussed on him and she recoiled in alarm. Then her face became calm again and she raised a slender, bejewelled hand to point past him. 

Frowning, Severus turned and saw that they were in a church. Weasley was standing before the altar, dressed as a groom while a smiling minister prepared for a wedding service. Ron had a wide grin on his goofy face.

"He wants to make me happy," Hermione said to Severus in a steady voice. 

"I shall try to be happy," she continued quietly as she walked past Severus, leaving him to stand alone.

"Hermione, stop!" Severus cried out then woke up in his bed with a gasp, his sheets tangled around his body and sweat on his brow. With agitation he pushed a strand of black hair out of his face. He couldn't let that nightmare happen - he couldn't stand by and watch Hermione marry Ron one day, to know that Ron would be eagerly pawing her every night. The very thought made his blood boil.

But what if he was too late? No. He wouldn't accept that. He had to tell her the truth he had tried to deny to himself.

He loved her.

The next day at dinner, Hermione found that to her surprise Professor Snape was watching her while she ate, a grim look on his face. 

What on earth had she done now? Hermione fumed silently, refusing to look at him again. Thank goodness she hadn't had Potions today. It was hard enough to be in the same room as Professor Snape at times as it was, resenting the fact that at times she was comparing Ron's clumsy hands with the more knowing ones of Severus.

"Hermione!" Ron said her name impatiently beside her and she belatedly realised that Ron had been calling her name a few times now.

"Yes?" she replied, her voice cool.

Ron hesitated. "Tonight at 10 pm, will you meet me at the Astronomy Tower? I have something really important to say."

Sneaking out after curfew - for those who dared to do so knew they faced tough penalties if caught by Filch or Professor Snape. Not many got away without being caught, either. 

But Hermione was a long time expert in dodging over-zealous night patrollers when necessary and she was already swiftly calculating the best way to make it to the tower unseen.

"All right," she nodded to Ron, not noticing that Professor Snape was still watching them both.

TBC


	11. Confrontation

Later that night…

A favourite pastime of Filch at night was to patrol the corridors with Professor Snape (and Mrs Norris of course), looking for Students Out Of Bed After Curfew. He took a sly pleasure too in watching the Head of Slytherin reduce a caught student to a cringing mess with a few acid words. 

Tonight though, when Filch made his periodic reports to him he noticed that Professor Snape seemed unusually restless - edgy, even, but Filch knew better than to enquire.

While he unfortunately lacked powers, Filch did have an unerring instinct to know when and where truant students were and tonight was no exception. He had just seen two students make their separate ways towards the Astronomy Tower, but instead of heading after the miscreants immediately, he felt that this particular job would be one that the Potions master would enjoy, oh yes. 

With Mrs Norris padding silently alongside him he hurried up to Professor Snape who was silently patrolling a corridor near the library.

"It's a bonanza tonight Professor and no mistake - I just spotted some of them Gryffindor brats heading up to the Astronomy Tower - the ones always causing mischief!" Filch smirked, rubbing his hands together in anticipation.

Professor Snape's head turned to his, the moonlight shining through the windows casting his profile into sharp contrasts of light and deepest shadow.

"It is probably Potter and Weasley again," Severus said grimly. "Let's go."

Filch smirked again. 

"No sign of Potter - but it's that Weasley all right - and Miss Hermione as well - I could tell it was them both. Probably up to a bit of you-know-what!" he cackled. Catching students 'in the act' so to speak was always priceless.

Professor Snape froze for a moment and there was the sound of a faint, indrawn breath, but then he spoke and his voice was its usual soft deadliness.

"I will deal with this - alone."

Filch smiled greasily. 

"Happy hunting, professor", he said, but Snape had already turned away swiftly, his black robes flying around him as he swept away down the corridor to the tower.

Meanwhile, under the moon and on the tower a question was asked and answered. Afterwards Hermione was quiet and self-contained in her black robes and plaited hair, staying behind to breathe the night air. Ron had left and for now she needed some time to compose herself. 

She had made her choice and now she would live with it.

Eventually she sighed and turning around went to the stairs, making her way down as silently as possible - she had had the feeling on her way here that Filch had spotted her. The last thing she felt like was a detention.

However, when she was at the bottom of the stairs she saw to her alarm a tall, thin and familiar shadow detach itself from the darkness. It was Professor Snape, the last person she wanted to see right now. He stared down at her through narrowed dark eyes and involuntarily Hermione flinched and took a step back.

An unreadable expression flickered on his face for a second then he curtly said to her, "You know the rules by now - come with me," and turning walked away, not bothering to check if she was following.

Alternating between feeling churned up inside and fuming at his arrogance, Hermione bit her lip and followed him down to the dungeons, keeping as much distance between her and him as she could. A torch set into the walls of the dungeon stairs flickered to life as they silently passed by - Professor Snape had not bothered to say another word to her.

Hermione had been in this situation before; most Gryffindors had. If Professor Snape caught you after curfew, he took you to his classroom and made you sweep the floor with a toothbrush or sandpaper the desks if he felt there was too much gum or graffiti on them. His view was that if you had the energy to sneak out at night then you would be able to carry out any task he thought of.

Severus was acutely aware of the wariness with which Hermione followed him, unable to forget the brief look of horror in her eyes when she had seen him. What had happened between her and Ron, he wondered. She had come down alone and he had not sensed Weasley's presence nearby.

Hermione uneasily wondered what onerous task he would set her this time. 

However, once they reached his classroom and he had called fire to the fireplace with a single barked word, he turned around to her, his arms folded across his chest and his face grim.

"How serious are matters between yourself and Weasley?" he demanded.

Hermione was taken aback and stared at him in shock. She hadn't expected him to say this. Then her chin lifted. 

"That's none of your business!" she said defiantly.

His black eyes glittered. 

"As I have just caught you out of bed after curfew and that you and Weasley were seen going up to the Astronomy Tower, I think it is my business," he said curtly.

Hermione was determined not to make this easy for him; for she was angry at the bittersweet yearning she was starting to feel for him again.

"All right, you've caught me," she said shortly, looking at him levelly. "Tell me what desks you want scrubbed this time and I'll get on with it."

Professor Snape glared down at her, irritably ignoring her previous words. 

"He is not good or worthy enough for you - surely you can do better than him!"

Now Hermione was furious. Professor Snape had set out to seduce her and had hurt her - now he thought he had the right to criticise the people she went out with. All right, she was sorry for his past but pity only went so far. 

"Well, I can't see anyone 'worthier' than him!" she retorted. "Especially in here."

Professor Snape's face froze. "Hermione, listen -"

But with her pent-up hurt rising to the surface finally, Hermione was determined to wound. 

"If you really want to know how 'serious' it is between Ron and I, then know this - just before he told me he wanted to marry me after we leave Hogwarts," she snapped. "I've always dreamed of having a lovely wedding dress," she added.

Professor Snape's head jerked as if she had slapped him. 

"A wedding," he said hollowly.

What was happening, Hermione thought with a bewildered and growing horror. She had entertained improbable daydreams where Severus had declared that he loved her and had begged her forgiveness, a suitable soundtrack by John Williams playing melodramatically in the background. But now, watching spirit as well as temper visibly drain from him, it was not so enjoyable to watch at all.

She had expected a caustic reply from him, not this pained response as if...as if he did care for her.

"I deserved to hear that, didn't I?" he continued in a flat, dull voice utterly unlike his usual silky one and his eyes were glittering in a strange way. 

"I hurt you when I shouldn't have and now you really are lost to me." 

He turned away and drifted over to the fireplace, straightening his shoulders with an effort as he stared down into the flames. 

"Just go - there will not be any detention," he said quietly.

He realised he hadn't felt this upset since he had discovered Clara's betrayal. But this time it was all of his doing. His fault. The dream he had had wasn't just a warning, but a promise of an event to come. No...

Hermione felt a tear run down her cheek and she walked slowly up to him. 

"I turned Ron down," she said softly.

There was a sudden silence then Severus turned his dark head a fraction in her direction. 

"What did you say?" he said queerly.

Hermione coughed to clear her throat. 

"I couldn't marry him. Not now, not ever. There's someone I can't quite get out of my mind yet, you see," she said quietly, softly placing a hand on his back. 

He slowly turned, and on his pale cheek Hermione saw a faint gleam, as if a tear had run down his face.

"You still care... even though I hurt you? You're crying," he said in a strained voice she had never heard before and with a slightly trembling hand he reached towards her face to pat a tear away that was running down her cheek. 

Hermione quivered under his touch and he paused, clearly thinking that she was repulsed by his touch, but she reached up and clasped his hand, staring at his face searchingly. Did he care for her or was he just reacting from wounded pride?

"There's part of me that still cares for you, Professor Snape, I can't help it. But would it really have mattered so much if I had married Ron eventually? You never said you cared for me, you know." 

Her words were said simply and flatly, but in her eyes there was sadness.

He spoke with an effort, as if the words, though genuine, were hard for him to utter. 

"I apologise for wronging you... I was cruel without cause. It wasn't until I saw you with Weasley did I realise I had lost something of great value after all. I… love you."

There was a lump in Hermione's throat that prevented her from speaking - though she would have been at a loss at what to say to ease the bleakness on his face. In the end she simply stepped up to him and embraced him with silent forgiveness, laying her head against his chest. She heard him give a deep, shuddering sigh and then felt him carefully embrace her in return as if she was fine china, his dark head resting over hers.

No words were said in this, two people seeking to know each other again, or to perhaps know each other properly for the first time. Hermione turned her head slightly, rubbing her cheek against the soft black cloth of his robes and the black buttons that ran up his body. She inhaled and smelt the exotic scent of spell ingredients that clung to him.

For his part, Severus knew sheer relief at holding Hermione in his arms again and disbelief as well at the second chance he had been improbably given. Life was good for once. She had turned Weasley down. He would have victory over Sirius Black and perhaps get to laugh in his face. He inhaled the pleasant scent of her hair and ran his hand gently down her back.

He wanted to kiss her, but just a single kiss this time. No rushing. He brought his hands up to gently clasp her face and tilt it up to his, saw the wary consent in her cinnamon eyes as he bent to kiss her. Just one kiss.

He wanted to kiss her. Hermione let him and she could tell that it would be just a simple kiss. No rushing. It was better this way, she knew. Just one kiss.

But when their lips met, their denied yearnings and love for the other flared up in them both, and they saw the knowledge of this in the other’s eyes as they froze and stared at each other afterwards.

Just one kiss? Who had they been fooling?

TBC


	12. More than a Kiss

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **This chapter contains SSHG lemons**

However, there was something else that Severus had to say.

"You discovered, of course, that I once had a fiancée called Clara," he said flatly, though his hand was tender as he reached to brush a strand of her bushy hair away from her face.

"Yes," Hermione said softly, staring at him before she gently embraced him. 

"I'm sorry she hurt you," she said simply, though in those words Severus heard her genuine sorrow for what had happened to him.

Severus went on, though it was hard in a way to voice thoughts he had kept to himself for a long time.

"I swore that I would never allow myself to truly care for a woman again after her lies and betrayal, and so it was all too easy to just treat you as a temporary infatuation, refusing to see that perhaps my feelings ran deeper. But in the end I was all too ready to believe that you were capable of deceit as well. Would you forgive me for rejecting you the way I did?" Severus said softly.

Hermione couldn't help but feel moved by the unexpected appeal in his voice; for it was not every day that you heard the Potions master admit that he had made a mistake. She had felt hurt by the way he had treated her, but she found herself now in the position of wanting to give him another chance, a proper chance this time. 

She realised too that he had not properly "looked' at her before. He had only seen someone he could seduce while trying to ignore a more significant reason for his interest in her, a thought that send a spreading warmth throughout her heart.

"Yes. I never intended to hurt you. After all, I had originally planned to anonymously leave the cake for you at Christmas, hadn't I," Hermione said quietly, though she was finding it hard to concentrate on speaking with Severus being so close to her, looking down at her the way he was currently doing.

"Because you cared for me," Severus said softly, his eyes glittering in an unusual way.

"Yes," Hermione replied, feeling her breathing starting to come faster. "I'm not Clara."

"No," Severus replied in triumph and then he bent and kissed her with yearning hunger, pulling her closer to his tall body. His black eyes closed in pleasure when Hermione parted her mouth under his and twined her arms around his neck.

He had missed kissing and touching her, no matter how much he had tried to forget it. But now he found that now with the barriers down between them, desire sang a sweeter song than before in his veins.

Hermione had tried to start again with Ron; she had really tried, but in the end it had been to no avail. When Ron had embraced her she had felt vaguely uncomfortable at times. When he had kissed her she had found herself secretly hoping that it would be over soon.

But here, now, in the arms of Severus she felt as though she belonged here. For good this time, for he had given her the words she had wanted to hear, that he loved her. She could feel the racing heartbeat against her equally racing one. When his hand moved to gently cup and caress her breast she whimpered in desire.

He laughed quietly against her mouth and she had no objections when he gently urged her back against a table. Clasping her waist, Severus lifted her up so that Hermione was sitting on it. Her face flushed, she whimpered again as he stepped closer to her, swiftly lifting her robe slightly. Then he parted her knees with his warm hands and insinuated himself between them, pressing himself intimately against her warmth.

"That's better," he murmured as Hermione gasped and embraced him, running her hands over his back as a burning hunger for him ran through her. Severus sought her mouth again, his kisses demanding. He wanted her so much. He pushed his hand through the top of her robe, his hand trembling slightly as he felt her warm skin underneath his fingers. He gently kissed her way down her neck as his hand moved down to caress her warm breast.

Hermione moaned and squirmed against the Potions master. Damn him, she thought in frustration. Why did he get to have more enjoyment than her at the moment? It was easy for him to touch her anywhere he pleased, for her robe was a fairly loose garment. But she could only touch his face, hands and part of his neck. As usual, he was wearing a black outfit that was repressively buttoned all the way up to his neck, the appearance of white cloth at his wrists and neck hinting at the shirt he wore underneath. All those buttons. She had had enough of them. All of them.

Hermione reached a determined hand up to the top button and managed to undo it (a slightly tricky task for he was currently dropping soft kisses in the hollow of her throat). One button was undone. Then the next one. Part of her mind noted that under her fingers she could feel that his white shirt was made from fine linen (no third-rate cloth at factory sales for him, of course).

The realisation that Hermione was intent on unbuttoning him eroded more of his self-control. With his breathing coming faster Severus leant forward, pushing her down on the table. Feeling his warm body on hers, a startled Hermione tried to think of something witty and seductive to say. 

She moaned and went pink (well, that had been a failure). Ah, if he didn't touch her again she would die. If she couldn't touch his body soon she would take him with her.

"I am not too heavy, am I?" Severus said huskily against her mouth as he moved his hand gently along her thigh. 

"No, it's fine... more than fine," she gasped and writhed under him as his seeking hand moved higher.

Suddenly Severus froze, his face flushing slightly and he pulled away from her. What had possessed him? He had had no intention of rushing her before and now here he was, preparing to take her on this uncomfortable wooden table for Merlin's sake!

Hermione stared up at him with bewilderment. 

"What's wrong? Is it me?" she asked in a quiet, shaky voice.

"It isn't you," Severus said harshly as he moved off the table and got to his feet. "It's me. I cannot... here am I about to make love to you on a table, and I had promised myself to take things slowly. I do not want to act like before when I had set out to get you in my bed as soon as possible, for one reason only." 

Though he tried not to show it there was a struggle for self-control and agitation on his face. "You should leave now, before I..."

He was really upset, Hermione realised as she sat up, her body trembling in remembrance of his touches. It was heartening to realise he valued her good opinion of her, but on the other hand she didn't want to see him plagued by doubt and self-loathing. Also, she didn't want him to stop, she admitted to herself. Part of her was naturally anxious at continuing to the logical conclusion, for despite Ron's inept attempts that she had tactfully rebuffed before, she was inexperienced. However, she felt a trust for Severus that she hadn't before, that he wouldn't willingly hurt her.

Feeling as though he needed a long, cold shower, Severus nevertheless offered a hand to Hermione for her to get off the table. Hermione took his hand, but instead of getting off the table she gently held his hand in both of hers, holding it as if it was something precious. His fingers quivered slightly under hers. 

"It's just a hand, nothing more," Severus said, trying to sound caustic but failing miserably.

Hermione took a deep breath, trying to calm down. 

"Do you know why I really gave you a cake for Christmas in the first place?"

Severus averted his face from hers as he suddenly remembered his other behaviour regarding that cake. 

"Hermione, you don't have to say -"

"Listen!" Hermione said firmly and he looked at her in surprise. She continued. 

"Every year at Christmas I would see you get grump-, uh, miserable, and this past Christmas I thought I would try to do something to make you happy, even if only for a little while."

Severus felt an unaccustomed lump rise in his throat.

"And now, after what we've both been through, I think we both deserve to be happy," she said. "Especially tonight. Don't push me away again," she whispered, gently bringing his hand against her cheek. "I love you, Severus."

He stared at Hermione wordlessly with his dark eyes, his heart seeming to pause for a second then he pulled her into his arms. 

"Come then," he said softly and taking her hand firmly in his one, he drew her out of the classroom and into his office. Silvery moonlight shone through the diamond-paned windows there, giving enough light for Hermione to see the door at the end of the office that led to his quarters.

It seemed to them both that their world had shrunk to just the two of them, while tingles ran up both of their arms from their clasped hands. On passing through the door into a dark room Hermione paused, aware of a thick carpet underneath her shoes. But Severus, a dark shape beside her, gently tugged her hand to follow his unerring direction into another room. Words were murmured by him and then fire sprang into life in a small fireplace. They were in his bedroom.

Hermione blinked at the sudden light and stared about her. His room was austere, with plain stone walls, though the firelight lent them a warm golden glow. In front of the fireplace was a chair, while against one wall stood an oak wardrobe with a chest of drawers beside it. Against another wall stood a bookcase laden with books. A white shirt lay where it had been carelessly flung over a stool and a pile of books were stacked haphazardly on a small table next to the bed. The bed was covered with a thick black bedspread that fairly invited you to touch and stroke it.

Despite herself she gulped and turned back to stare at Severus, who was watching her as if everything else paled into insignificance besides her. Some nervousness must have shown in her eyes for he gently drew her to him and kissed her tenderly, the way he had kissed her the first time beside the frozen lake while his hands caressed her back softly. 

"Don't be afraid," he whispered, and Hermione let out a sigh, putting her arms around him. He said a word and then she felt her hair free itself from its confining braid to tumble in a brown waterfall down her back.

Taking his wand, he tapped the end gently against her stomach. 

"To prevent pregnancy," he explained quietly and whispered a protective charm that sent a tingle through her.

“Thank you,” she said with relief.

Putting the wand aside, Severus then turned back to her. He hesitated, then asked her in a slightly awkward tone whether Ron had slept with her. Hermione blinked then shook her head firmly. 

"No," she said. "I haven't slept with anyone. I found I didn't want to sleep with Ron, either." 

Severus managed to conceal a triumphant smile, feeling an almost primitive glee in the fact that Ron had not bedded her, would never bed her if he had anything to say about it.

Then his hands were running down her body and grasping her robe gently, Severus pulled it up over her head and cast it on the floor. She kicked off her shoes, feeling a bit self-conscious as she stood before him in her undergarments, unaware of how lovely she looked, her skin a warm gold from the light of the fireplace. 

Then Hermione’s chin lifted and there was a gleam in her eyes as she stepped towards him. 

"My turn," she said thoughtfully.

Severus felt his mouth go dry, his breathing coming faster. Her turn? Why, he was this close to asking her to do anything she wished with him. His eyes were pools of heated darkness as he watched Hermione gently tug at his cloak, removing it and dropping it on the floor. A look of intense interest had replaced the nervousness and she reached towards his buttons on his chest.

"I've had daydreams about undoing these buttons," she said half to herself and then flushed. 

His eyes gleamed down at her. 

"Hermione, I assure you I did not choose these clothes for them to be the object of fantasies for hormone-driven women," he said dryly, bending to kiss her neck. "Nor did I recall daydreams about me being part of the class requirements. However, I will not deduct points for your impertinence."

Hermione felt a grin tugging at her mouth and paused for a second. 

"That will be a first, I think."

Severus raised his head to give her a brief yet fierce kiss. 

"Have I given you leave to stop?"

Hermione pretended to look contrite. 

"No. I apologise for my lapse," she said as she moved her hands back to his buttons. When she had completed that task he took the heavy black frock coat off himself and tossed it aside, then tilted his head to one side in sardonic invitation for her to continue.

There was a shy gleam in her eyes when she took off his white shirt and she blinked when she saw his lean torso. There was no reason to keep that covered up, no reason at all, she thought. 

However, when she dropped her hands to his hips she hesitated. Severus took pity on her and kissed her gently. Then kicking his shoes off, he removed his trousers and the rest of his clothing until he stood naked and oddly beautiful before her.

Her eyes widened and she blushed when he reached determinedly for her, deftly removing the last of her clothing before pulling her into a tight embrace. 

"Severus," she gasped against his mouth as he kissed her fiercely, both of them trembling at the feel of their naked bodies touching each other. 

"I love you so much… what are you doing to me? You touch me and I am boneless," he whispered harshly against her mouth.

"I think that's my line," Hermione muttered, instinctively arching her body against his. She wanted him so much. 

Severus gave an inarticulate cry and then he lifted her up in his arms and laid her on the bed, stretching out beside her. He was determined to touch her everywhere and did so, smiling in triumph at her moans... encouraging her to touch him and crying out in his turn when she did so.

When she could bear the tension no more she arched against him. 

"Severus... oh, please," she begged him and then he groaned, his body moving over her and pushing into her warmth. Her body was new to passion and so his movements were gentle, his black hair brushing her face as he stared down at her with love. 

Hermione was unable to look away from his face that was flushed with passion as he rocked against her, knowing that hers looked the same way. There had been a brief pain for her at the beginning but now passion overtook them both and flung them to a dizzying height where there was no one but themselves and love as their bodies and souls entwined.

Then the Slytherin and the Gryffindor fell back to earth dazed and satiated, content to lie in each others arms in the aftermath of passion. 

TBC


	13. Afterwards

When Hermione's mind came back to itself she found she was lying in Severus’ arms under the covers of the bed. Her body felt languid and sated. The fire still burned brightly in the fireplace and the room felt like a warm, cosy nest. She blushed as memories rushed back. Had they really - had she - had he -

We had sex, she thought in astonishment, realising she must have spoken aloud when there was a chuckle from Severus, his hand moving gently over her bare skin. She lifted her head to see him watching her, his black hair lightly tickling where it brushed over her skin and his eyes a brilliant black. 

"If we didn't have sex, then I'm waiting to hear your description of what we did," he said dryly. "Or rather, what you were doing since there were two of us, you know."

Hermione snuggled closer to him. Yes, there was a very nice body under his clothes. 

"You can't talk - you're the one who wanted to make love on the table," she countered. 

"Yes, but you had no objections at the time," he retorted lightly, a smile of dark amusement on his face as he bent to kiss her softly, feeling a warm happiness inside that was rare for him, for he had found a completion in her. 

"Fine, blame it on me," Hermione sighed, returning his kiss.

Afterwards, Severus looked at her closely.

"You do know I will have to continue acting towards you in public as if you are an irritation to me," he warned.

"I know," Hermione nodded. But at least they would both know it was pretence. Then there was a mischievous look in her eyes and she gave a big sigh. 

"To keep up appearances I don't suppose it would be a good idea to have any more of, you know," she mused. "Which is a shame because -" her next words were cut off by a unexpected giggle when Severus abruptly pushed her on to her back, pinning her to the bed with his newly roused body and glowering down at her though there was a gleam in his eyes.

His voice though was a silky, dangerous purr that sent pleasurable shivers down her spine. 

"If you think to deny me the pleasures of your delectable body, my Miss-Know-It-All, you will have another thought coming." He paused to kiss her, hard, then continued. "I would have to show you the error of your ways. Repeatedly."

Hermione blinked at him. "I don't think I would complain," she mused thoughtfully, trying to keep her thoughts coherent (which was a increasingly difficult task). 

His black eyes glittered down at her. 

"You would not be complaining if I have anything to say about it," he murmured, his hand moving purposefully down her body then hovered at her hip in silent question. 

"Yes," Hermione breathed, twining her arms around his body as he crushed his mouth down on hers and buried himself inside her. It was less awkward this time for her and her body seemed to melt against his like warm honey as he took her, determined to put his mark on her very soul.

"I think I'll be crawling back to my room at this rate, not walking," Hermione mumbled a while later, a bit out of breath. "I think I'll need a shower, too."

Severus, regretfully disentangling himself from her body, tilted her face up to his with a gentle, pale hand. 

"I have a bath which you are welcome to use," he murmured. He was in a mood to be generous, and it pleased him to see her look of surprise.

"I am?" Hermione said, surprised at his thoughtfulness.

"It is big enough for two," he added in an off-hand voice, watching her out of the corner of his eyes.

Hermione blinked and blushed slightly, an all-too-clear vision of her and Severus in a bathtub together. Then she nodded. 

"All right then," she said in an equally off-hand voice. 

"Then it shall be done," Severus commented, his eyes glinting as he rose from the rumpled bed, picking up his discarded cloak and flinging it over his pale body. 

He walked over to a door in the corner of his bedchamber and opening it walked through the doorway.

Presumably it led to a bathroom because Hermione soon heard the sound of running water. She wondered what his bath looked like - though knowing him it was probably something old-fashioned and not one that encouraged you to loll around in it and daydream. Still, a bath would do wonders for her right now, and it was big enough for two, he had said. Mwhaa, Hermione thought, feeling her face turning a definite pink as she sat up and bundled her tangled hair into a rough knot at the nape of her neck. 

After a while, she heard Severus call out to her that the bath was ready and that any comments about the lack of a rubber duck would be ignored, thank you.

Hermione found herself grinning and getting up off the bed wrapped her discarded robe about her to preserve some modesty. Padding over to the doorway she walked into the bathroom and blinked. 

Severus was a man who disliked unnecessary luxury in his life - his clothes were all in a severe, classic style and galleons were spent on books, not on ornamentation. But living in a chilly castle full of draughts (despite efforts to remove them) had left him with an appreciation, no, a need for a decent bathroom, that although set out along simple lines, was the best that galleons could buy.

The floor was made up of pale grey marble tiles that also marched up the sides of the walls to waist height, the rest of the walls and ceiling painted white. Though a light source was evident, its whereabouts was hidden to the casual eye. The vanity and sink were granite of a darker grey with a small, mirrored cupboard above contained personal items one accumulated in a bathroom, while another door led to a toilet. A wicker basket stood against one wall, a black sock hanging down from its lid giving the bathroom a homely touch.

Hermione's attention was caught by the other occupant of the bathroom and the freestanding tub in the corner, hewn from copper-coloured stone. It was round, too and filled near to the brim with gently steaming water. 

Lavender would kill for such a bath, Hermione thought. In the closest wall, set where one could comfortably look out when seated in the bath, was a round window of clear glass that fairly bristled with defensive spells that she sensed also rendered the view to be one way only. Nothing short of a bomb would get through that window, Hermione thought. The vague outlines of mountains could be seen in the distance, and the black sky glittered with stars.

Severus, in his dark attire was perched on the side of the bath, frowning slightly as he tested the water with a hand. Then he muttered something under his breath and the waters hissed and bubbled for a moment then subsided. He tested the water again and allowed his frown to subside. Perfect. Then it faded altogether when Severus turned his dark head to gaze at Hermione and studied the expression on her face with amusement.

There was a sardonic smile on his face. 

"I did say I had a bath, so why don't you cease your impersonation of a gaping goldfish and enjoy it."

Hermione needed no further invitation, unfastening her robe and hanging it on a nearby hook, feeling only a bit self-conscious as she felt his darkly appreciative eyes upon her body. There was only one towel on its rack, she noticed, a thick black one. Then she clambered into the bath, sighing as she sat down in the warm water. 

"That feels wonderful," she said appreciatively, smiling up at Severus. She obviously had no knowledge of what that smile did to him, he thought, feeling compelled to murmur a soft-edged word, his pale fingers trailing in the water. He smirked at her look of surprise as foaming bubbles spread swiftly across the surface of the water.

"I don't believe it - a bubble bath!" Hermione said, laughing at the unexpected hilarity of it all, having a bubble bath in the middle of the night with Professor Snape. Who on removing his attire from his thin body joined her in the water, his face relaxing at the feel of the water soothing his limbs. 

Passion had been spent for now between them, though this did not stop Severus from taking the soap and after kneeling in front of her, gently washing her. His hands learned again the soft curves of her body, his black eyes closing in pleasure when Hermione did the same to him. Certainly it seemed to take all of his self-control not to groan at the gentle exploration of her hands upon him.

His eyes opened though when she exclaimed unhappily over the Dark Mark on his arm. Or rather, what remained of the Dark Mark, now a small, twisted mass of dark scar tissue. For Voldemort in his last days had enacted a final, petty revenge against the Death Eater who had left him by speaking a word that was vicious to the ears of those who had happened to hear it. Severus, with an agonised shriek torn out of him, had found the Dark Mark burning in pain into his arm. 

"Leave it," he told Hermione tersely, but not unkindly. "Nothing can be done for it, I have tried."

"Does it hurt?" Hermione asked with concern, a grave dignity upon her despite the streaks of bubbles adorning her neck and face from his teasing hand (he had decided to ignore the bubbles which she had patted on his nose). 

"Sometimes, yes. But it can be tolerated." 

To which Hermione could only reply by reaching out and holding him.

It was with reluctance that after the bath Hermione left him for her own bed. She was dressed in her own robe, her hair neatly plaited again and feeling the cleanest she had been in a long time. 

Severus was back in his own clothes too because, he commented while he kissed her goodbye at his door, he had some papers that regrettably needed marking.

"Well, don't stay up all night then," Hermione scolded him. 

His thin mouth quirked. 

"I won't dignify that with a 'yes dear' but will urge you to go, before I change my mind and take you back to bed. Good night, love."

"Good night," Hermione whispered, feeling unwilling to leave in her turn, both of them holding the other tightly for a moment. 

Then Hermione stepped back and turning made her way back up to her room. She had a separate room from the others as benefited her status and made little noise, but not far away there were ears that listened and eyes that stared into the darkness and wondered where she had been for so long.

TBC


	14. Angry Hearts

The next day Hermione woke up feeling tired and wondered why before she remembered last night. A goofy grin foreign to her was on her face as she remembered her time with Severus, but then she sobered when she remembered also her rejection of Ron. Poor Ron. She had hated hurting him, but she knew that any life together with him would have been impossible.

With an involuntary smile darting across her face from time to time though, she got up and dressed for the day, Crookshanks winding around her legs all the while and implying that the human slave needed to provide food, now! 

When Hermione checked herself in the mirror she paused as she looked different somehow. There was a faint sparkle in her eyes too - but it would not be suitable to show this to others who would only know that she had broken up with Ron.

With a solemn look on her face she went down to the Gryffindor common room. Ron was talking to Harry there but broke off when he saw Hermione. With a tight, sullen look on his face Ron abruptly turned and walked out of the room. Harry turned to look at Hermione, an uncomfortable look on his face and visibly steeling himself before approaching her.

"Hello Hermione," he said quietly.

"Hello Harry," Hermione replied, feeling that there was no need to fake the sad expression on her face now. Never one to hold back, she looked at Harry directly. 

"Ron's told you what happened, hasn't he?"

Harry hesitated, clearly unwilling to be caught between his friends. He couldn't understand why Hermione had broken up with Ron, as he had thought nothing could be better than his two best friends paired together. 

"Ron said he wanted things to become serious, but you turned him down. I've never seen him this upset. Hermione - why? If you don't mind me asking, that is. I thought you were perfect for each other," he said, his face and tone of voice troubled.

Hermione sighed. "In the end, I realised that I only thought of him as a friend," she said quietly. "I know that's enough for some people to build something on, but I couldn't. I didn't mean to hurt him, but I think in the end he would have been hurt even more."

Harry stared at her then sighed. 

"I see. I'm sorry. But are you sure though that you can't give him a second chance?"

Hermione shook her head in genuine regret. 

"No, I can't. I'm sorry."

Harry then looked at her covertly and said abruptly, "What happened to you last night? I know from Ron that you were both going to go up to the Astronomy Tower, but only Ron came back. I didn't hear you return until hours later - were you caught by a teacher on the prowl?"

Ron had told Harry with an air of mystery yesterday that he was planning to ask Hermione An Important Question at the tower, and though both of them had gone up there, Harry had only heard the angry, hasty footsteps of Ron returning. A useful spell he had learned was how to hear and recognise the sound of footsteps in distant rooms and Harry had not heard Hermione's return until quite a while later.

Hermione froze for a second then recovered. 

"Yes I was, by Professor Snape," she said evasively.

Harry grimaced in sympathy. 

"That doesn't surprise me as he's always prowling the corridors like some overgrown bat. The last time he caught me at night he made me polish all those jars he keeps in his office with pickled 'things' in them - I swear their eyes were watching me too. He probably made you do something unspeakable for ages as well."

Hermione swallowed. Now was definitely not a good time for truth. 

"Uh, yes, something like that," she said faintly.

Harry gave her a sympathetic smile, noticing how uncomfortable she looked and resolved to give her some respite. 

"Come on, let's go and have breakfast," he said.

They both trooped down to the Great Hall. Most of the students were eating in there already, the morning sun shining gently through the windows over the Head table. All of the staff were present, including Severus, with his usual I-hate-morning-until-I-have-coffee look on him, but who looked up sharply when he noticed Hermione had arrived in the hall. They both stared at each other for a timeless, intense moment until he abruptly looked away. They had to maintain indifference to each other in public, Hermione told herself firmly as she walked to her table. After all, no one really looked at Professor Snape unless they had to.

When she sat down she noticed that Ron had pointedly sat as far away from her seat as he could and there were some uncomfortable looks on the faces of the other Gryffindors. It was clear Ron hadn't wasted time in telling the others what happened - perhaps portraying her as a cold-hearted bitch as well, Hermione thought with a sinking feeling. 

The Slytherins who were always quick to laugh at the misfortunes of others had obviously overhead something regarding the situation as they were giving Ron gloating, amused looks, while Draco leered at Hermione knowingly. Hermione glared at him scornfully then looked away.

At the Head table, Sirius was upset to see the signs that Ron and Hermione's relationship had broken up. He muttered as much to Dumbledore who was on his right and to Professor McGonagall who was nearby.

"It is a shame," Professor McGonagall agreed.

"Yes," Dumbledore nodded. "But we cannot interfere. We are guiding the education of our students but we cannot mend their hearts when they break, no matter how much we may wish to. Remember this, Sirius."

Sirius sighed. 

"I thought she would have been perfect with Ron after…" he broke off and went back to his breakfast. Though Professor McGonagall gave him a perplexed look he refused to enlighten her. 

After a while, Sirius turned and looked at Snape who was on his left with a suspicious look in his eyes (Sirius was a great believer in keeping friends and enemies close). He had a feeling in his gut that Snape was behind this, somehow.

"Isn't it a shame about Hermione and Ron?" Sirius asked Snape in a voice that was just a shade too casual.

Severus looked back at him with icy black eyes that successfully hid his feelings. 

"What students do with their personal lives does not interest me in the slightest," he said curtly, a faint curl to his mouth. 

In a strange way though, Severus felt he owed Sirius a debt, not that he would be telling him this. If Sirius hadn't pointed out to himself yesterday that Hermione was going out with Ron, it may have been too late for the satisfying reconciliation they had had last night. It made his head spin slightly just recalling it. 

However, his attention had been caught by what Sirius had said in regards to Hermione being 'perfect with Ron after…'. 

What did Sirius know, and really, what was his sudden concern for Hermione? Severus resolved to find out later.

Sirius stared at him hard, then grunted and turned back to his food.

Dumbledore watched this interchange with curiosity, but said nothing.

With Ron clearly refusing to talk to her, matters were uncomfortable between the three friends, with Ron deliberately monopolising Harry's attention throughout the day. It was uncomfortable for Harry, for while he couldn't ignore Ron he did feel sorry for Hermione, for it was clear to him now that she had not broken up with Ron out of spite.

Matters were also uncomfortable for Hermione in Potions. Both Severus and Hermione did not realise how difficult it would be to pretend indifference until Hermione came to the Potions class for the day. Although Severus was writing a formula on the blackboard and only gave her the briefest of glances, both of them were suddenly and acutely aware of the others presence in the dungeon classroom.

While Hermione was bringing out her textbooks for the lesson, Draco turned around in his seat and smirked at her, and then to Ron who was nearby. 

"What a shame the Gryffindor lovebirds have broken up," he jeered, before giving Hermione a sly wink, delighted at having the perfect chance to taunt the haughty Know-It-All. 

"If you want a *real* boyfriend, you'll find that I'm more of a man than Weasley," he added suggestively.

Ron growled something unintelligible and had to be restrained from lunging out of his chair by Harry, while Hermione glared at Draco. 

"You're the last person I'd want for a boyfriend!" she hissed, her hands clenched into fists and contempt on her face.

There was the rustle of robes and suddenly Professor Snape was standing beside them, a forbidding look on his face. 

"Malfoy, surely you can find something better to occupy your mind than other people’s love lives?" he hissed, having overhead everything. "Five points off Slytherin." 

Then without a glance at Hermione or Ron he turned and swept back to the blackboard, silently fuming. If Draco even thought about laying a finger on Hermione, he would regret it, he promised himself grimly.

The Gryffindors were amazed that Ron and Hermione had escaped punishment, especially Harry. He had the funny feeling that the professor had been angry on Hermione's behalf as well, which would be highly unlike him. Surely he was imagining things. Yeah, that was it.

Draco was taken aback at being chastised for once in class by Professor Snape. As a result he felt furious at being made to look foolish and turned thoughts of malice towards Hermione. Stuck-up cow, always making out that her brain was better than anyone else. She would pay, he would make sure of it. There would be a time when she was off-guard and then he, Draco, would be waiting.

During the lesson, Severus thought that if he finely tuned his awareness of Hermione he would be able to hear her soft breathing, the steady beating of her heart. When he looked at her long hair he remembered how it had felt to tangle his hands in it. Her presence in his Potions class both soothed the dark restlessness that lay within him and inflamed it. Some of his habitual bitterness had faded from him and though he didn't realise it there was a new sense of coiled energy about him.

For Hermione, she had the surreal feeling that when the professor spoke, it was only to her, that the others were inconsequential in his eyes. She felt in her heart that here in this school, with him, was where she wanted to be forever. 

Harry and Ron frequently talked of becoming Aurors and hunting down renegade wizards abroad, but she had put down roots here at Hogwarts. Besides, there were always things going on here to put many Muggle adventure films to shame!

She was resolved though to steer clear of Professor Black. She had the feeling he was quite concerned over her break up with Ron and had seen him watching her intently in his Defence Against the Dark Arts class before. She had slipped away quickly though after class before he could stop her and have a 'friendly chat' with her. 

If he discovered that she was in a relationship with Severus now, Professor Black would believe that she had been 'seduced' again by him and perhaps do something about it in his own well-meaning way. Which meant there was bound to be trouble when the relationship was brought out in the open, Hermione thought gloomily. What if he challenged Severus to a duel?

After the lesson, Hermione delayed in gathering her belongings together while the other students filed out of the room. Harry casted her a sympathetic look before he followed Ron, who had not looked back. When the classroom was empty except for herself and Severus, he lifted his wand and pointing it at the door curtly spoke a word. There was a hollow click as the door locked and he looked narrowly at it, then spoke aloud. 

"I would say that gives us five minutes before the next horde of students arrive."

Hermione needed no second invitation and getting up from her seat made her way into the aisle, but Severus had already anticipated this and sweeping down from the podium, his black robes flying around him, swept his lover up in his arms and kissed her soundly. Hermione flung her arms around his lean body and kissed him back, both of them delighted to be holding the other again.

When they separated, gasping for breath, Severus glowered down at her. 

"How I am to cope when I see you during the day and be unable to touch you is beyond my capacity to understand," he growled, but nevertheless folded her gently back into his arms. 

"Well, I'll be feeling the same way, you know," Hermione retaliated to the Potions master. 

"I should hope so!" he retorted, then his voice softened. "Dear witch. You have stolen my heart, you know," he murmured, giving in to sentiment despite himself.

Hermione smiled up at him. "I'll keep it safe," she promised. A fleeting smile devoid of his usual cold malice darted across his face, which quite transformed him, she thought. 

Then he looked grim. 

"Has Sirius been bothering you?" he asked abruptly. 

Hermione opened her mouth to answer but was interrupted by a hesitant tap on the door. 

"Uh, Professor Snape, the door won't open!" came the nervous, squeaky voice of a student on the other side who clearly wished to be elsewhere. The next class had arrived early.

Severus scowled at the door. "I'm thinking of turning him into a spider. Or something equally nasty," he mused. 

"Well, make sure he doesn't escape afterwards," Hermione said in dry amusement, giving him a reluctant kiss of farewell and letting him go. However, he clasped her upper arms for a moment. 

"I will see you later," he said meaningfully. 

Hermione nodded seriously. 

"I'll tell you about Sirius later then. I'll see if my diary has a vacancy for you."

"Wretched Gryffindor!" Severus scolded, giving her a last, hard kiss before letting her go. "It will be more points off for impertinence if you don't be careful."

Hermione smiled then went to get her bag. The door was unlocked again by Severus and the next class of students nervously entered the room. 

Severus went "hmph!" under his breath and went to the blackboard to write up the next lesson. 

When Hermione left the classroom she had a deliberately unhappy look upon her face and so it was quite easy for the other students to think that she had been purposely kept behind to receive one of Professor Snape's venomous lectures about performance, or lack of it, in class.

After all, why else would she have stayed behind?

TBC


	15. Encounters

At one point during the day on the way to a class, Hermione tried to talk to Ron but was met with flat rejection. 

"I don't want to talk to you!" Ron said tightly. "Just... just stay away from me." 

It hurt him in a place inside that he didn't know existed that Hermione had rejected him. That she didn't think he was good enough for her.

Maybe one day he would be able to look at her without anger. But not today. 

He walked away, and with a heavy heart Hermione watched him go.

That night after Hermione had finished her dinner she left the Great Hall to freshen up before she slipped away to see Severus. However, she was waylaid by two people with determined gleams in their eyes.

"What do you want?" Hermione asked cautiously, her eyes widening when two words were mentioned that sent a shiver down her spine.

Later that night when most people were asleep, Professor Snape was busy marking papers in his office, pausing occasionally to dip his quill in his inkpot and then to resume writing (often scathing) comments on the student papers that passed before his eyes.

He had to admit to himself that he was wondering whether Hermione would be coming to see him as she had promised. Logically, he had no cause to worry for she was one that was scrupulous in keeping her promises. 

But doubts born from his naturally pessimistic nature began to whisper, 'maybe she has something better to do... maybe she has decided you are not worth the effort of a relationship... or maybe she will come and say you are a lousy lover. After all, didn't Clara say that?'

Severus shook his dark head irritably. That way led to madness. Hermione hadn't been lying when she had said she loved him and had been eager to kiss him today in his classroom. That wasn't the sign of one with 'morning after' regrets. His voice was curt though when there was a knock on his door. 

"Who is it?"

"It's Hermione", came the firm reply.

"Come in then," he called, his voice softening despite himself.

Hermione opened the door quickly and shut it behind her equally quickly, looking slightly out of breath. 

"I didn't think I would get away!" she muttered. 

Severus put his quill down and stared at her in surprise. Her hair... 

His mouth twitched.

"Don't ask what happened to me, just don't!" Hermione warned ruefully as she walked over to him where he was sitting behind his desk, visibly relaxing when he reached out swiftly and pulled her down onto his lap.

"It looks like you had a duel with a hairdresser and the hairdresser won," he murmured in curiosity, reaching up a hand to gently tug one of her plaits. 

For indeed, instead of her usual single plait, most of her hair was now arranged in numerous tiny plaits.

"Lavender and Parvati decided I needed a 'girls night' with them so they could console me for breaking up with Ron," Hermione sighed, blushing slightly in spite of herself to be sitting on his lap, feeling the warm strength of his legs underneath. 

Her friends had been too determined to have their way despite her excuse that she was busy, both of them agreeing with her in their room later that she had done the right thing to separate from Ron (“anyone could see you weren't suited”) and had spent a lot of time discussing the favourable attributes of the Gryffindor Quidditch team (“or the Slytherin team if you want to walk on the wild side like we did!”). 

She had barely made it out their room alive, she thought with a shudder.

"I see," Severus murmured, holding a plait up into the candlelight and looking closely at it. 

"Beads?" he enquired delicately, for small brown beads had been woven into the plaits.

"Don't laugh!" Hermione warned.

"As you wish," Severus murmured, seeking her mouth with his. With the sensation of her kisses in return and her warm arms moving to enclose him he could feel the coldness in his soul retreat, as it had last night when her warmth had surrounded him. She shifted restlessly on him and he bit back a cry of want. But despite his urge to carry her to his bed there were matters that needed to be discussed. Or rather, the matter of a certain wizard. He inwardly sighed and broke off the kiss.

Hermione made a soft sound of protest and went to kiss him again but he forestalled her by placing a hand over her mouth. 

"In a moment. Stop that," he ordered in a strained voice when she gently licked his fingers. 

"I need to know about Sirius."

Hermione paused. Of course, she was going to discuss Professor Black with him. But was it her fault that all rational thought seemed to fly out of her head at the sight of Severus, who still radiated a brooding sensuality even when he was doing his best right now to glower at her. Very well. She might as well make it easier on them both for now, too. 

"All right, I'll go and get another chair," she sighed but when she went to stand up, she felt his arm wrap around her waist and firmly pull her back onto his lap. 

"Stay. I do have enough self-control not to ravish you... yet," he said dryly. "Now, as I was saying, Sirius appears to be taking a certain interest in you at the moment. Why is this?"

Hermione hesitated. She had made up her mind to tell him but explanations could be tricky. 

"Well," she began, "do you remember when we had that snow fight?"

Despite his determination to let his intellect rule, his eyes became a simmering black and his hand wandered down her spine. 

"I do," he murmured. "For a while there I forgot to loathe snow, for which you are to be blamed."

Hermione tried to ignore what his low-pitched voice was doing to her insides, coughed and made herself continue. 

"Well, it turns out that he had been watching it. All of it."

Severus frowned and straightened slightly in the chair, muttering something under his breath that sounded like "damn voyeur". 

"Go on", he said tersely.

"Well, he came up to me later on and said that he thought I had more sense than to 'get involved' with you and that you would only hurt me. I didn't really believe him, although later I thought he had a point," Hermione said reluctantly.

Severus opened his mouth to say something scathing about Sirius and his parentage when he paused, his mouth twisting. As much as he hated to admit it, Sirius had only been looking out for her at the time. When he noticed remembered hurt on Hermione's face his eyes flickered and he lifted a hand to gently touch her cheek. 

"You know if it were possible to take back the pain and start afresh with you the right way I would?" he said in a quiet, intense voice.

Hermione's mouth curved upwards in a small smile and she moved her cheek gently against his hand. 

"Yes, I know." 

Then she sobered. 

"I'm worried that when he finds out about us - especially now - he might do something stupid, like accuse you of 'seducing' me again and challenge you to a duel. I would hate for that to happen."

Severus eyes narrowed to slits but he kissed Hermione gently in reassurance. 

"That will not happen. But if Sirius does anything as half as idiotic as that - and since he's deluded into thinking you and Weasley are ideal for each other he might - he would regret it. And I would enjoy every moment in proving that to him." he said flatly.

A rueful expression appeared on her face. 

"I agree that Sirius probably thinks Ron would have been the 'right one' for me."

"He would probably think that as well when you're raising a house full of Weasley's screaming brats, reduced to using house cleaning spells while he waltzes off to play Quidditch with Potter!" he growled.

Hermione shuddered at the thought. 

"No, thanks. I would rather continue my study of Potions, as your apprentice, perhaps," she said truthfully, wondering how he would react for Severus rarely took on apprentices.

Severus drew his head back, a look of intrigued surprise on his face. 

"You really wish to, don't you?" he murmured, studying her intently. "Not just because of me. Very well. Provided you pass your final exams with flying colours, which I do not doubt (at that Hermione flushed with pleasure) you may have a six month trial as my apprentice. If you manage to create a variety of original formulas that meet my standards - and we are not sick to death of each other," he added dryly, "then you may become a full apprentice in your own right."

"Thank you!" Hermione said in sincere relief and hugged him, smiling.

"But do not expect any special favours from me though," he whispered against her neck.

"You rarely give out special favours at all so I won't expect any," she assured him.

"Ah, more impertinence from you I see," he purred, moving his fingers to softly caress her breast, his hand easily cupping it.

"I thought we were having a short break from that," Hermione gasped, arching against him.

"We were. But having established that Sirius is merely an annoyance to be ignored, the break is over," he said firmly, gathering her up in his arms and carrying her off to his quarters. "Besides, it is late and time for you to be in bed. Mine."

Hermione had no trouble in agreeing with him on that point.

TBC


	16. In the Library

Time passed, the weeks edging into summer.

People eventually grew tired of speculating about Hermione and Ron's breakup. Ron, who had found willing consolation in the arms of a curvy Hufflepuff who hung on to his every word, stopped shunning Hermione. 

There was a coolness though in his manner towards her that remained.

Though there were times when Hermione was tempted to announce to Harry and Ron that she was staying on at Hogwarts as Professor Snape's apprentice, the words seemed to freeze in her throat. She told herself that she was letting down Gryffindor House for this cowardly behaviour, but every time she intended to come clean as it were, a picture of her friends appalled faces would appear in her mind and she would find herself backing down again. 

She knew they would question her endlessly and ask "why?" over and over until she would eventually blurt out that she and Severus were lovers... possibly becoming more than just lovers one day. The scenario worsened in her mind when she imagined Harry telling Sirius the news and the resulting fallout.

Hermione told herself that she had enough stress to deal with right now, because as the end of the seventh year approached, they were all consumed for studying for their final exams. Despite her talent for studying, even she was finding herself feeling grumpy and weary at times. 

At this time of year Severus was busy as well in ensuring that students would be as prepared as possible when it came to their exams - no one would fail in his class if he could help it!

What kept Hermione going completely off the rails was the somewhat bemused, sparkly happiness inside of her when she thought of Severus. She was level-headed enough not to let it show - to the world she was still the sensible, intelligent Gryffindor Head Girl, but there seemed to be a subtle glow about her now and a new, gentle sway to her walk that often drew second glances from others. Even Draco was not immune, much to his resentment, for he had not given up thoughts of revenge upon Hermione.

Although she and Severus could not talk to each other during the day, Hermione would often find tucked inside a returned and graded assignment a brief, secret note penned in his jagged handwriting with sardonic comments about life in general (or a tongue-in-cheek look at the advantages of being a Slytherin). The notes would always end with 'yours, Severus' to her delight (and a charm would always be present on the notes to avoid the attention of overly-curious eyes).

No love poetry though ("I've never written romantic fluff in my life and I don't intend to start, though I feel the distressing urge to read some to you. This is obviously your fault."). Certainly his black sense of humour had increased since they had started sleeping together and she regretted the time when he found out she was ticklish (and like any self-respecting Slytherin, proceeded to take advantage of this fact).

On the part of Severus, he found that he liked conducting a love affair with Hermione under everyone’s noses, especially that of Sirius.

Little by little, Severus had begun to change - not in ways that totally transformed him, for he would always be the sarcastic, complex wizard that he was and there were times when he and Hermione would unleash their stormy tempers against each other. But with the firm knowledge that Hermione loved him, warts and all, hadn't tired of him yet as he sometimes secretly feared, was quite happy with him in bed (and he with her, it should be said) this led him to start viewing life with less cynicism.

He stood taller, and it was noted that his hair was glossier these days, for he washed his hair more frequently than he had in the past (which removed much of the grease). Memories of Clara were put away in a far corner of his mind, as one puts away old things no longer of use. He was less likely to bite heads off people if they asked him a question (unless they had asked something really idiotic) and there was less amusement to be found by him in singling students out for random acts of humiliation.

Students started to relax and hope that what had reduced Professor Snape's black moods would continue indefinitely. Sirius, who was occupied with the latest antics of his children and kept awake at night, could not have cared if Severus started dyeing his hair blonde.

One night brought a storm and most students decided to stay within their respective common rooms to study rather than going to the library. However, that didn't stop Hermione from going there (murmuring a charm she had learned to turn aside the gazes of Filch and Mrs Norris in their nocturnal overseeing of the school).

She often preferred the quiet and peace of the myriad rooms of the vast library to the common room. Many late nights in there too would have Hermione hear the rustle of robes after a while, and when she looked up she would see Severus standing there, his haughty profile softening as he looked down at her. A warmth he never showed during the day would be there in his dark eyes.

A charm would be cast around them to make any visitors to that particular room see nothing of interest in there at all, their gazes sliding over the odd sight of Hermione and Professor Snape sitting together at a book-piled table, their heads almost touching as they pored over books. Certainly nothing would be seen when later on the Professor and Hermione left the room together.

Tonight she was weary as she sat by herself at her favourite table, for it had been a busy day. Indeed, she had been tired throughout the week, feeling as if the school year was starting to catch up to her. She brought up a hand to her mouth to cover a yawn.

"She nearly falls asleep over her dinner, yet here she sits studying," she heard Severus say dryly behind her, Hermione feeling his hand drop lightly on her shoulder while the storm chose to let loose a dramatic roll of thunder. 

"This either shows a willingness to learn, or pig-headed stubbornness characteristic of a Gryffindor."

"Or both," Hermione said lightly, smiling as she leaned back in her chair, tilting her head back to see Severus looking down at her. His smile was quirky, for from his perspective her face looked upside-down to him. She got up and went to embrace him, laying her head against his chest with a sigh. 

On a stormy night like this she could imagine nothing better than lying in his arms under the warm covers of his bed. She was certainly looking forward to a time when she didn't have to sneak back to her bed late at night after visiting Severus... it would happen eventually, she promised herself. She would tell the others eventually and try and make them understand.

Hermione leaned up to kiss him, though tonight her kiss was the kind given when one is tired and desire subsumed by weariness. Severus noted this and part of him was disappointed, but he accepted her kiss with grace nevertheless, pulling her close as he returned her kiss.

Hermione's smile was rueful when they broke apart. 

"Kissing is all that I am good for tonight - anything else and I will fall asleep half-way through. I'm sorry." 

She regretted that lately there had been many nights where study had demanded her complete attention.

Severus made a slight huff of male disappointment but sat on the edge of the table, his black robes cascading around him like dark petals as he gently drew her onto his lap. His silky voice was anything but gentle to her ears, though. 

"You are fortunate that I am a patient man, though there will be a time when I will demand payment for that patience."

Hermione smiled and reached up a hand to play with his black hair. 

"I'll make up for it once the exams are over, I promise."

Severus bent his head to kiss her with pleasure and then they were both just content to be in the presence of the other. It was hard for Severus to sneer at concepts such as happiness and joy when he was with her like this (not that he would admit this to her).

Hermione turned her head later to glance at the books she had been studying from and sighed. 

"I can't study anymore tonight - I'm getting a headache just looking at those books."

His arms gently tightened around her. 

"Then if I can't tempt you back to my bed, I can at least tempt you with my illicit supply of hot chocolate."

Hermione's head lifted with renewed energy at that. 

"Chocolate? Well, why didn't you say so before?" she said cheerfully. "Lead the way, please."

Severus rolled his black eyes in mock offence. 

"Now she wants to come back with me when I mention chocolate," he said irritably. "I see I have a deadly rival for your affection - how can I compete?" 

He gently set her down on her feet upon the floor and with sinuous grace got off the table as well.

"Well, chocolate is definitely sweeter than you," Hermione assured him with an impish smile.

His eyes gleamed down at her. 

"Impertinence from you means no chocolate from me," he warned. "Now come along."

He offered his arm and she took it as they left the room, confident in the knowledge of being unnoticed. But tonight Professor Snape's senses had not been as sharp as they should have, for the discharged energy from the frequent lightning strikes over the school had temporarily confused his magical senses (a weakness on his part).

Certainly Hermione had been too tired to realise that Harry had been in the room with them, wide-eyed as he had watched and listened from underneath his Invisibility cloak…

TBC


	17. What's Going On?

That night Harry (who had found himself needing to borrow a book for study) had made his way to the library after curfew in his invisibility cloak. Over the years he had quietly placed extra and expensive spells over his cloak so as to avoid detection by teachers such as Snape on the prowl.

It was a wet and stormy night and most students had preferred the cosiness of their common rooms to study in rather than the library. It was deserted and quiet in there and Harry was able to find his book without too much trouble; the occasional white glare of a lightning flash giving the aisles an eerie glow. He had been about to leave when he had seen a light of a lantern shining from a room down one of the library's many corridors. The library wasn't deserted after all.

With his trademark curiosity (and knowing that he would not be noticed), Harry had silently walked to the open doorway and peering through it had seen Hermione in the room. She was studying at a table surrounded by a pile of books, while a lantern on the table bathed her and the desk in a pool of golden light. Harry had smiled to himself. Trust Hermione to be in the library again.

He had been about to sneak up and surprise her (Harry had found performing the occasional prank welcome to his spirit after years of tension in dealing with Voldemort) when he had noticed with alarm a tall figure standing in the shadows of another doorway on the opposite side of the room. It moved swiftly towards Hermione... to be revealed as Professor Snape!

Knowing that Hermione was about to be reprimanded for being out after curfew, Harry readied himself to cast off his cloak if the situation turned ugly. But he could never have imagined what he had seen next - Hermione responding to the caustic greeting of the professor with a smile and then getting up to hug and kiss him!

Further proof that Harry had entered some bizarre alternate universe was when Professor Snape, instead of shoving Hermione away and snapping at her, had embraced her instead, his voluminous black robes enveloping her as he bent his dark head and kissed her in return. 

Thoroughly. 

As if he knew what he was doing (Harry never tried to think of Snape as someone with (ick!) a sex life), was pleased to be doing this to Hermione and had indeed, done this before to Hermione. Worse, after the kiss was over, Hermione apologised to the professor for not being able to do anything more than kissing tonight!

Oh no, Harry had thought in horror. This implied that she had... they were... they had both had sex together. More than once? Sex on an ongoing basis? Oh Merlin, that thought was worse! How could Hermione bear to have Snape touch her that way - touch her at all? How could she prefer Snape after Ron? It made him feel nauseous just imagining it.

In his shock, Harry had silently backed away from the doorway for a second to clear his head. He had missed hearing the next words spoken between Hermione and Snape and then there had been silence.

When he had silently approached the doorway again, steeling himself, he had stared at the scene before him. Professor Snape was sitting on the edge of the table, his arms gently cradling Hermione who was sitting sideways on his lap and leaning her head comfortably against his shoulder. On Professor Snape's face had been an expression Harry had never seen before - that of someone who was holding the one thing that meant all the world to him. An equal expression had been on Hermione's face as well. Harry's original impression that he was watching some twisted perversion faltered, leaving him confused. Surely a relationship between Hermione and Professor Snape was wrong in every way that mattered… yet for a second it seemed to be something right.

Harry had been further nonplussed when Professor Snape had offered to give the tired Hermione hot chocolate, with them both companionably leaving by the doorway that the professor had originally come through (after snuffing the lantern with a casual word). 

Kindness, tenderness... these weren't things one associated with Professor Snape even if he *had* mellowed lately. Certainly Harry had never heard the professor speak to anyone in that intimate, velvety purr he had spoken to Hermione with.

Needless to say Harry felt as if his head was spinning from the shock of what he had seen.

What to do first? 

Go after them both and confront them - but what would he say to Hermione? 

“What you're doing is beyond all the laws of nature?”   
“You need exorcising - right now!” 

Of course, by then Snape might have awarded him multiple detentions and possibly swatted him like a fly with his formidable powers.

Then he thought of going to Sirius and Harry relaxed. Of course! He would have better ideas than Harry in what to do in this situation, for as far as Harry was concerned something needed to be done about a relationship between Hermione and Snape.

Harry hurried through the corridors to where Sirius resided with his wife Emma and their twins James and Lucy. Sirius was a night owl so to speak and would hopefully be able to spare some time to him. On reaching the door to his chambers Harry took off his Invisibility Cloak and draped it over his arm before knocking gently on the door.

"It's Harry," he called softly. "Are you awake?"

"Harry? Come in boy!" Harry heard the muffled voice of Sirius reply in surprise. 

Harry opened the door and walked into the quarters of his godfather. The outer sitting room was cluttered and there was the sweetish/slightly sour smell of babies and talcum powder in the air. A tired looking Sirius was casually sprawled out on a comfy-looking brown couch drinking a cup of black coffee while Professor Lupin (in his usual shabby looking attire) calmly sat drinking tea in a chair. It appeared that the babies were asleep at last for there was no sound to be heard from the private rooms that were at the far end of a toy-strewn corridor.

Sirius frowned at Harry. 

"You look like you've had a shock - sit down. What is it?" 

Harry gratefully sat down on a nearby chair, Professor Lupin smiling encouragingly at him. He took a deep breath and then said it as best as he could. 

"I was just in the library under my Invisibility Cloak - and I saw Hermione and Professor Snape kissing. I think they're having an affair!"

There was a dead silence then Professor Lupin unexpectedly chuckled and sipped his tea meditatively before placing the cup back on the saucer with a gentle 'chink'. 

"Well, that explains a few things," Remus mused.

Sirius stared at Remus as if he had suddenly started speaking gibberish. 

"What on earth are you talking about?" he growled, his face furious. "Explains what? This time Snape has gone too far and you know it." 

Harry looked at Professor Lupin in bemusement.

Remus looked at them both, a gently ironic look on his face. 

"Surely you've noticed that Snape is in a better mood these days; why, he doesn't even sneer when he gives me my potion now. He even replies civilly when I say hello to him; just that in itself is a miracle," Remus said.

Harry thought about that. It was true that Remus had a point. Potions class was more relaxing these days now that Snape had stopped flying into tempers at the least excuse, and occasionally Harry had noticed a faint, secret smile on his sallow face as though he was a cat who had just eaten a big bowl of cream. 

Was that because of Hermione?

"You've got a point," Harry said thoughtfully. "You know, his hair isn't so greasy anymore. Maybe he's discovered shampoo... or he took the hint when I- um, someone left a bottle of shampoo on his chair earlier this year" (Snape had been practically foaming at the mouth after that prank).

Professor Lupin smiled at him. 

"These things led me to believe that perhaps he had a lady friend tucked away somewhere. If there's anyone who needs to get laid on a regular basis for his own good - pardon my language Harry - it's Snape. So Hermione's the one? Well, well. On the rebound from Ron as well, it seems. But they're probably well suited when you think about it."

"I can't see why you're taking this so calmly, Remus!" Sirius said through gritted teeth. "It has to stop and I'll be the one stopping it. I thought Hermione had more sense than to go back to him after that break-up with Ron but I was wrong!"

Professor Lupin and Harry looked at Sirius, startled. 

"Back to him?" Professor Lupin said slowly. "What are you talking about?"

"Huh?" Harry said in confusion. Would someone please tell him what was going on?

Sirius Black's smile was mirthless. 

"Oh yes, I can tell you a few things about those two. She wanted to 'cheer him up' at Christmas - and he set out to seduce her instead. I warned her to avoid him but she didn't listen. I ended up providing a handkerchief so to speak, when he broke her heart like matchsticks just like I warned her he would.” 

“When I saw her going out with Ron I thought it would help her get her life back together - and now you're telling me that Snape's got his hands back on her. He must have coerced her, I'll bet twenty galleons on it."

Harry's face was pale. He felt angry, bewildered and confused. Snape had set out to seduce Hermione - how dare he? What kind of game had he been playing at? Surely Hermione would have been better with Ron. But now Snape and Hermione were back together it seemed - surely Sirius was right and there was some sort of enchantment involved. But on the other hand he remembered watching Hermione and Snape together. There had been a sense of happiness in them both that didn't seemed to be caused by a spell. 

He didn't know what to think.

Professor Lupin looked troubled. 

"What you're saying is worrying... but there's no sign of any spell on Hermione," he argued. "I would have seen it during classes. Besides, it would seem that any problems between them have been um, resolved. Harry, when you were watching them before, how was Hermione acting towards Severus? Was she subservient? Fearful?"

Harry hesitated. 

Sirius, who was watching him keenly, spoke in a low, intense voice. 

"Come on boy, you can tell us."

"Well, Hermione wasn't acting like that, and Snape wasn't nasty to her at all. That was the strange part - I'd never seen him happy before," Harry said slowly.

Professor Lupin nodded thoughtfully. 

"I think we should think things through carefully before doing anything rash, Sirius."

But Sirius was having none of this. 

"Am I the only one who sees the truth? I'm going to put a stop to this right now!" he growled. "Harry, were they still in the library when you left?"

Feeling uncomfortable, Harry nevertheless said, "No, they were going back to his rooms for some hot chocolate."

Professor Lupin blinked. 

"Hot chocolate?" he mused.

Sirius snorted. "A likely story. You can come along or not - it's all the same to me," and before Remus or Harry could stop him he rose to his feet swiftly and exited the room.

Remus got to his feet in alarm, looking concerned. 

"Damn that temper of his. This could get ugly - come along Harry, we have to follow him and prevent him from doing anything rash."

By this time Hermione had taken her leave from Severus, feeling pleasantly sleepy now with the hot chocolate she had had. She trudged up the stairs from the dungeons and when she reached the corridor she was surprised to see Draco furtively walking along the corridor. What was he doing out of bed? Hermione wondered in irritation. Up to no good as usual, probably. 

There was an equal look of surprise on Draco's face when he saw her then it faded, to be replaced by an uglier look. Hermione sighed to herself and made sure her hand was on her wand in her pocket.

"Well, well, look who's just had detention," Draco said snidely as he sauntered towards her. The high-and-mighty Hermione brought down to her proper level, he thought with malice.

"Still, I would suppose you would feel right at home in the dungeons. I'm sure mudbloods have more detentions than real wizards," he taunted.

Hermione was furious. 

"Don't call me that, you pathetic excuse for a wizard. You may be a pureblood but you probably got into Hogwarts only because your father is a governor," she snapped.

"Bitch!" Draco snarled and reaching out abruptly he gave her a shove. 

Hermione was caught off balance and stumbled to regain her footing. But then in sick horror she realised the stairs to the dungeons were just behind her... she cried out in alarm as she tumbled down the stairs and was knocked unconscious when her head hit the bottom.

Draco blanched. This was unexpected, but not entirely unwelcome. If he sneaked back to his bed now, he could claim he knew nothing about it in the morning. He turned to flee.

Severus was putting away the cups in his quarters when his sharp ears distantly heard Hermione yell, the ominous sounds of thumps, then silence. 

Alarmed and with a grim look on his face, he swept out of his rooms and through the office and flung the door open. 

"Hermione?" he questioned sharply and then his face went white when he saw her lying like a tumbled rag doll at the foot of the stairs. 

"Hermione!"

TBC


	18. Accusations

Severus moved swiftly to Hermione's side, reaching out with his magic to her in alarm as he kneeled down beside her. She was alive he realised with relief, just concussed from the fall. But why had she fallen in the first place - had it been because she was tired and as a result she stumbled upon a step? She had been quite weary, after all. 

He cursed himself for not having enough torchlight available - had he brought this upon himself?

Hermione would no doubt have a splitting headache when she awakened, but for now the best place for her was in the infirmary. He carefully lifted the comatose Gryffindor in his arms to take her to Madam Pomfrey's, though when he walked up the stairs he didn't quite expect to be greeted by Remus and Potter, who were staring at him and Hermione warily, wands at their side… as well as Sirius, a grim look on his face and with his wand pointed straight at Severus.   
What in Merlin's name?

"What did you do to her, Snape?" Sirius growled at Severus.

His temper rising, Severus looked back at Sirius with narrowed black eyes. 

"I hope you're not implying that I was responsible for Miss Granger's current state. Because if you did, then I would be watching my step," he snapped.

"I'm not implying anything; I'm damn well saying it!" Sirius snarled.

The atmosphere grew oppressive, and to defuse it Harry stepped forward, swallowing as he did so.

Before, looking at Professor Snape carrying an unconscious Hermione up the stairs in his arms, looking like a fallen angel risen from some unholy pit and with his thin mouth tight, it would be easy for a casual onlooker to assume that Professor Snape was in some way responsible for her plight. Indeed, the thought had immediately jumped into Harry's mind. Certainly Sirius was thinking that way - but Harry was starting to wish he hadn't told his godfather what was going on.

Looking at Professor Snape now and seeing emotion briefly flashing through his dark eyes, the years suddenly flashed back in Harry's mind. 

Harry was alone in his living room and scrubbing out the fireplace, his young body already grimly accustomed to infrequent meals. A sudden breeze blowing through an open window had caused a fragile ornament to teeter, then fall over and shatter.

Not surprisingly, Aunt Petunia had quickly rushed in, her sharp face already set into an expression of wrath, his uncle and cousin following on her heels like predators aware of spilt blood nearby. 

Despite his protestations of innocence, Harry had been blamed for the accident (and subsequently confined to his cupboard room for days) because in their eyes it was something he would do, that they automatically believed the worse of him.

Harry had had the feeling of being backed into a corner, with the awareness that no one was on his side. No one to help, not now and not anytime soon. A similar awareness he had just seen in Professor Snape's eyes.

Seeing how protectively the professor was carrying Hermione, it came to Harry that unbelievably, he did love Hermione - that if he hadn't at Christmas time, then he did now.

Now, seeing Hermione unconscious and with a smear of blood on her forehead, Harry asked Professor Snape urgently, "Professor, what happened? Is Hermione all right?"

With an effort, Professor Snape turned his hostile dark eyes away from Sirius. How dare Sirius practically accuse him of pushing Hermione down the stairs? He stared at Harry for a long moment, as if he was something that might need squashing if he proved to be a threat. 

But then in a curt voice Professor Snape said, "I found her at the foot of my steps, Potter - not through any of my doing, thank you! Whether it was an accident or not I have no idea. But if the lot of you would Get Out Of My Way I can take her to Madam Pomfrey as soon as possible."

But Sirius wasn't finished. 

"And what was she doing in this part of Hogwarts at this time of night in the first place, eh? You just couldn't wait to get your hands on her again, could you, Snape?" Sirius breathed.

Professor Snape's gaze whipped back to Sirius in renewed fury. If looks could kill then Sirius would have been a corpse at that moment. 

"How dare you talk to me like that!" Severus snapped.

He knows! Severus realised. They all did, that he and Hermione were seeing each other. Of course, this meant that Sirius had to come charging down here like some goddamned knight in shining armour, Potter and Remus in tow to 'rescue' Hermione from his supposedly evil clutches. 

But how had they known?

Suspicious, Severus flicked his gaze quickly back to Potter who started, and yes, there was a flash of guilt in his green eyes, he grimly noted. 

Potter, so much like his father. Potter, always sneaking around and prying where he shouldn't. Potter, with his damned invisibility cloak.

Unexpectedly, Remus stepped forward to put a restraining hand on Sirius. 

"Sirius, get a hold of yourself, man! Can't you see Hermione needs treatment? Deal with the rest later."

With an effort, Sirius lowered his wand (though only slightly) and grudgingly stepped aside, as did the others, so that a tight-lipped Severus could sweep off down the corridor in the direction of the infirmary, aware of the others following. 

He was determined not to give up Hermione without a fight - if Sirius continued in his attempts then he would fail. He, Severus Snape, would see to it.

The hospital wing had lights on as always for patients taken there at night to be cared for by Madam Pomfrey. A peculiar aspect of her talent was to know in advance when patients would be arriving and so the capable lady bustled up to Severus without surprise when he arrived in her domain with a still-unconscious Hermione. 

He had not been followed in here by the others, a fact that made him suspicious and wary.

"Professor Snape, what happened to Hermione?" Madam Pomfrey inquired briskly. Severus had learnt years ago that intimidating attitudes did not faze her at all, and so she was one of the few people here he had a grudging respect for.

"She fell down a flight of stairs," Severus replied, a hint of anxiety showing in his voice as he carefully laid Hermione down on a bed neatly made with spotless linen sheets, grimly noting her bruised and slightly bleeding forehead.

"Concussion, then. Poor dear, she will need something for that headache she will have when she wakes up," Madam Pomfrey clucked. "Those bruises look quite nasty and that blood must go." 

She hurried away to fetch a bowl of water while Severus carefully removed Hermione's shoes, and grabbing a folded blanket at the foot of the bed shook it out and gently draped it over her still form.

When Madam Pomfrey returned with a bowl of water and a cloth with a SpeedHeal charm cast over it to encourage swift healing, Severus said abruptly, "I will do this," taking them both from her. 

If she was surprised at the unusual concern he was taking in the welfare of a student from a rival house then she showed no sign, moving off to ready some potions to be force-fed to Hermione if she showed signs of deterioration.

_Hermione, come back to me_ , Severus thought to himself as he sat on the edge of the bed, his black robes a contrast to the white sheets and the lines of his face more pronounced as he gently cleaned her forehead of its dried smear of blood. There was a rumble of thunder in the distance.

It unnerved him to see Hermione lying there so pale and still, even though he had seen far worse sights in his life without blinking or flinching. He wanted to see her cinnamon eyes sparkle up at him again, her dry comments and laughter to keep his shadows at bay.

He stiffened when out of the corner of his eye he saw Potter come through the doorway and approach the bed. Severus ignored him, concentrating solely on Hermione. When he had finished and put the water and cloth down on a nearby table, Severus turned and looked at Harry coldly. 

"Where's your precious godfather and Remus?" he asked with soft malice. "Busy sending off for the guards of Azkaban?"

Harry paled slightly but looked at him squarely. "They've gone to see Dumbledore." 

TBC


	19. Confessions

Severus narrowed his eyes at Harry. 

"I'm surprised that you're not there with your godfather. Supporting him... telling him what you saw, perhaps?" he continued in the same tone of soft malice.

Harry looked uncomfortable but didn't look away. 

"I came to see how Hermione was - has there been any change?" he said quietly.

"No," Severus said curtly, continuing to watch Harry. The thunder had ceased outside but rain continued to fall, beating harshly against the diamond-paned windows of the infirmary.

Harry flushed and then sat down on the edge of a bed beside Hermione, his demeanour awkward. 

"I didn't intentionally spy on you both tonight but when I saw you, uh, together, I didn't know what to do. So I went to see Sirius."

Harry saw Professor Snape's thin mouth twist in scorn. 

"I see. What a touching confession. So you immediately went to relate how unnatural you thought it was to him?"

"No," Harry said softly.

"I find that hard to believe," Professor Snape started to retort but Harry dared to interrupt him. 

"I said you both looked happy."

Surprised into silence, Professor Snape blinked and stared at him.

Harry continued. He thought this had to be the strangest conversation he had ever had with the professor who had been the bane of his school life through the years. 

"Sirius thought you had cast some spell over her. He said that you had tried to seduce her at Christmas and then cast her aside - that she would be better off with Ron."

Severus opened his mouth to snap a reply when Hermione stirred slightly and mumbled something under her breath. His eyes widening, Severus turned to look at Hermione, his hand instinctively reaching out to her while Harry half-rose from where he was sitting.

But it was only a false alarm, for the brief struggle back to consciousness had not been strong enough to rouse her. The two wizards saw with dismay Hermione subside back into her comatose state.

Professor Snape's shoulders slumped slightly, much of his temper fading and he looked visibly weary. Then he stared at Harry grimly, his words rapid and quietly fierce. 

"Listen to me, Potter - Hermione broke up with Weasley herself. I had nothing to do with that. But she is the part of me I had never realised I missed - can you understand something like that, boy? She came back to me and I swore I would never hurt her again, so if Sirius tells me I have some sort of evil hold over her I will take his wand and ram it down his lying throat!"

Harry couldn't think of anything to reply to that, and Professor Snape didn't seem to expect a reply, turning to gaze again at Hermione. But there was a faint thawing in the professor's attitude when Harry got up and sat on the other side of Hermione's bed in silent vigil. He felt in his heart that Professor Snape was telling the truth.

"I heard there had been an accident?" came the calm words of Dumbledore, whom Severus and Harry realised was standing there in the doorway. 

Harry got to his feet out of respect while Severus stayed where he was, though he nodded curtly at the headmaster, his mentor, who was looking gravely back at him. An assessing glance, almost as if Severus was being weighed, and perhaps found wanting.

Inwardly Severus flinched. He would never admit it, but the good opinion of Dumbledore meant a lot to him, for the Headmaster had for a while been the only one to believe his repudiation of Voldemort was genuine.

"I have heard various accounts of how young Hermione had ended up at the bottom of your stairs, Severus," Dumbledore said mildly as he approached the bed.

"I have no idea why she fell, Headmaster," Severus asserted in an even voice.

"Hmm," Dumbledore nodded to himself as he peered down at Hermione.

"She nearly woke up before," Harry quickly informed Dumbledore, who nodded again in approval. 

"She has a strong spirit that does not accept setbacks easily. Nor do I think she is one to be easily coerced, as has been suggested," Dumbledore murmured.

Professor Snape said nothing, but Harry saw his pale hand tighten upon the blanket, and then forcibly relax.

Dumbledore continued. "However, there are matters that need to be cleared up so I must ask you, Severus, to come back to my office with me."

There was a shuttered, closed look on Professor Snape's face and his voice was tight. 

"Very well." 

He rose to his feet, his black robes cascading restlessly about him as he did so, and gave Harry a quick look that could have meant anything. 

But Harry realised what it was. 

"I'll stay and watch over Hermione," he said quietly and there was a brief flicker of approval in his black eyes before Professor Snape left the room with Dumbledore without a backward glance.

There was no conversation between Severus and Dumbledore on the way to the Headmaster's office, and behind his impassive face Severus' thoughts were racing furiously. How many half-truths and outright lies had Sirius already told Dumbledore? 

Dumbledore had quietly made it known to Severus that he was always available for a talk when necessary, that he was there to listen - but in this case who would he listen to - Severus or Sirius?

Severus had felt triumph when Potter had admitted to spying on him and Hermione, the little sneak, but he was surprised that Harry had shown more tolerance than was expected. Admittedly, Severus had been secretly concerned that there might be a noticeable backlash against Hermione when things came to light. 

Hermione... he found himself praying to any merciful gods who could hear that she would wake soon.

For once, all the Headmasters in their respective portraits in Dumbledore's office were all awake, tugging at beards and peering down at the wizards below. There was a triumphant smirk on the face of Sirius as he sprawled in a chair in front of Dumbledore's desk, while Remus in his chair had a grave expression on his face when Severus and Dumbledore walked in.

"Has Hermione awakened?" Remus asked Severus quietly. 

Severus narrowed his eyes at him. 

"No," he replied curtly.

"I'm sorry," Remus said sincerely.

Dumbledore sat down at his desk, waving at Severus to sit down; which he did stiffly. Fawkes on his perch nearby watched the proceedings with interest in his young-old eyes.

The Headmaster looked at all three wizards gravely. 

"Tonight serious allegations regarding the nature of a relationship going on between Severus and young Hermione have been brought to my attention. I believe that matters may be resolved successfully without turning it over to the Ministry of Magic, but in order to do this successfully, certain measures must be taken. Severus, would you drink this please?"

Dumbledore nodded at a small crystal goblet that glittered on his desk. It was filled with water that bobbed about gently as the goblet levitated from Dumbledore's desk and floated over to Severus, who stared at it, the frown lines on his face deepening. Upon seizing the goblet he gave it an interrogative sniff, but that gesture was unnecessary for he sensed what had been added to the water. 

He felt a mixture of betrayal, anger and humiliation rise within him.

Veritaserum, the potion that compelled the truth from those who drank it, was what he was required to drink.

TBC

A/N: Though it may seem harsh, Albus feels he has a good reason for giving Severus Veritaserum.


	20. Questions

Severus couldn't believe that he was being required to drink Veritaserum and his black eyes glittered angrily at Dumbledore, who was watching him calmly.

"You cannot mean this, Albus," Severus whispered, his fingers closing convulsively around the goblet. "You know I would tell you the truth!"

Dumbledore nodded calmly. 

"Then see this as just a way of verifying the truth so it will be established for all who hear," the Headmaster said gently and his eyes flickered briefly in the direction of Sirius, who was leaning forward slightly with an anticipatory smile on his face. Sirius, who was no doubt expecting to hear an account of how Hermione had been pushed down the stairs by him, and tales of magical coercion, depravity and the corruption of innocents, Severus realised in fury. 

His original anger against Albus faded slightly, but this was not something he would lightly forgive him for. Or forget.

"Is this right, Sirius?" Dumbledore asked Sirius sternly.

Sirius nodded grimly. 

"Yes," he said shortly.

Though it galled him to admit it, Severus knew that drinking the truth potion would be the only way to reveal the accusations of Sirius for the lies they were. He was furious though at being made to reveal personal details in this way... but it was Sirius who would pay for this indignity.

"Very well," Severus said curtly and he lifted the goblet to his mouth and drank down the contents swiftly, holding on to an image of his love in his mind for strength. At first he felt no different but then after a moment the world took on a dream-like quality and a glassy look appeared in his black eyes. 

The goblet fell from his suddenly slack fingers onto his lap with a soft thud, a few leftover drops spattering over his black robes. He gazed down at the cup with a vague frown.

Dumbledore leaned forward in his chair, his intent gaze on the younger wizard.

Sirius smiled. Now Severus would be revealed as the truly heartless man he was. If Dumbledore would be too lenient, then he, Sirius would make sure Severus got his just desserts.

Remus frowned to himself. This situation was bad and getting worse with Severus being forced to take Veritaserum for the sake of young Hermione. He didn't believe for one moment that Severus had pushed her down the stairs or cast an enchantment over her, but Sirius had overridden his views to Dumbledore with his own version of events. 

Remus felt himself to be a shrewd judge of character and Severus did not have the air of one who had bent another to his will, but rather of one understandably upset over the plight of his girlfriend.

Dumbledore's voice towards Severus was calm and soothing. 

"Severus, please tell us your name."

Severus raised his unfocussed, glassy gaze to the Headmaster. "Severus Snape," he said slowly.

Dumbledore nodded. "Thank you. Now, I just have a few questions for you."

* * * * *

Despite his promise to watch over Hermione, Harry was finding himself starting to nod off. Suddenly Hermione moved restlessly on her bed and her eyes flickered and then opened.

"Hermione, you're awake!" he exclaimed with renewed alertness and Madam Pomfrey came hurrying over.

Hermione winced and groggily brought up a hand to her forehead. 

"Not so loud... ah, my head hurts!" she mumbled, wondering what was going on. 

She closed her eyes and heard Madam Pomfrey telling Harry to stand aside, then she felt her warm hands gently touching her forehead. Hermione felt some of the pain ease, which made it easier for her to think. How had she come to the infirmary and why was her body feeling slightly battered?

Madam Pomfrey spoke again and Hermione opened her eyes. 

"Tell me what your name is, child."

Hermione frowned. What a stupid question to ask! 

"Hermione Jane Granger," she replied testily.

The nurse held up three fingers. 

"Now, how many fingers am I holding?"

"Three," Hermione muttered. She wasn't brain damaged, for goodness sake! 

Madam Pomfrey smiled in relief. 

"Not a serious concussion then, thank Merlin."

Concussion? Hermione frowned. She was... she had... she had fallen down the stairs, she remembered suddenly, flinching. There had been an argument with Draco and he had shoved her, she had fallen down the stairs. She remembered crying out, remembered landing painfully and a star-filled darkness blotting out everything.

"I fell... how did I get here?" Hermione exclaimed.

"Professor Snape brought you here," Harry said quietly, and there seemed to be a strange undertone to his voice, though Hermione didn't feel up to interpreting it.

"He did?" Hermione whispered, glancing discretely around the infirmary but there was no sign of her sardonic professor. She could see that it was raining outside with water streaming down the diamond-paned windows. Despite lanterns nearby, the infirmary seemed to be filled with shadows and Hermione shivered for no accountable reason.

"Yes, he did," Madam Pomfrey said briskly. "Quite concerned he was, too." 

Hermione bit her lip. There was nothing worse than discovering an unconscious person, something that unfortunately happened quite regularly at Hogwarts. She could just imagine how horrified Severus would have felt on finding her. But where was he, Hermione wondered to herself. Perhaps he felt he would have given away too much anxiety over her, perhaps alerting others that he cared for her. Hermione felt guilty at that thought.

Madam Pomfrey continued. "Try and sit up, dear, so I can give you something to make you feel better." 

Hermione gingerly sat up with the help of the nurse, Harry hovering nearby. The room spun for a moment then steadied, and her pillow was put behind her back to make her feel comfortable. Hermione thanked her and after accepting a goblet filled with a yellow potion that resembled chicken soup, she drank it down. It felt soothing as it slid down her throat and after a moment Hermione could feel her various aches and pains easing. She still felt somewhat weak though, it was probably a good idea to stay here the night and rest. Her uniform was a crumpled mess though - there was no way she wanted to sleep in that.

Madam Pomfrey took the goblet from Hermione when she had finished and turned to Harry kindly.

"You should leave now, Harry - she's out of danger now and just needs a good nights sleep."

There was an intense look in Harry's eyes. 

"Can I just stay another five or so minutes? I just want to talk to her privately - is that all right?"

Madam Pomfrey pursed her lips and frowned, then she relented when Harry looked at her with pleading in his green eyes. She had always had a secret soft spot in her heart for the orphaned wizard who had saved their very world from destruction.

"Very well - but no longer than five minutes mind! She needs rest," Madam Pomfrey said sternly and then rose and bustled away to her office.

Harry sat down on the side of Hermione's bed and then looked at her searchingly. 

"I have to know something - Hermione, how did you fall down the stairs?"

Hermione's mouth tightened and her eyes were dark. 

"It was Draco's fault, the rat. He picked a fight with me in the corridor and when I defended myself, he shoved me and... I fell down the dungeon stairs." 

She hesitated over whether to tell why she had been in that part of Hogwarts in the first place.

Harry's eyes widened in amazement. 

"Draco?" he echoed. "It wasn't Snape, after all. I knew it!"

Hermione looked at him in bewilderment. 

"Of course it wasn't Snape - why would he do that?" she asked carefully. There was something wrong here, Hermione felt it. 

"Why do you think he would do that in the first place, Harry?" she continued.

"I don't believe he did - but Sirius does," Harry said heavily.

Hermione blinked and there was a feeling of dread in Hermione at the mention of Sirius Black's name. What did he know?

"Why would he think that?" Hermione said warily as she brushed a strand of hair out of her face, feeling as though she was tiptoeing on eggshells.

Harry took a deep breath. 

"Because when we - that is, Sirius, Remus and I - found Professor Snape carrying you up the dungeon stairs, Sirius practically accused him of being responsible. Professor Snape denied it and brought you here - but Sirius and Remus went straight to Dumbledore."

"What?" Hermione breathed in horror. She couldn't believe what she was hearing.

Harry continued. 

"Dumbledore came here a little while ago and asked Professor Snape to come with him back to his office. For questioning."

Hermione's face was white and she was feeling dreadful - and past caring if Harry was suspicious as to why she was concerned about the Potions master. She was horrified at the thought of Severus being questioned at the moment over her - she could just imagine how furious he would be at being accused by Sirius.

Did Sirius know about her and Severus? And if so - how many others had he told? Did Harry know?

Harry spoke carefully, looking awkward. 

"Hermione, there's another thing. Sirius believes too that Professor Snape has some sort of evil hold over you - because he knows now that you've been seeing each other. I'm sorry for this, but I saw you both, um, in the library tonight and I told Sirius because I didn't know what to do. Remus happened to be visiting Sirius at the time; he said he felt Severus had been seeing someone."

Hermione closed her eyes tightly and took a deep breath, shocked. This was more than just trouble - it was catastrophe. Harry had seen them both earlier... had he been wearing his Invisibility Cloak? He must have been otherwise surely she or Severus would have spotted him, she thought grimly. 

It was no surprise though that Harry would have felt something ‘wrong' was going on. But what if Severus was punished now in some way? She would have to do something to prevent it - this was more important than seeking vengeance on Draco. Then she opened her eyes and looked at Harry, refusing to cower and look guilty.

Harry returned her gaze, looking steadily and slightly sadly at her. He wasn't yelling at her like she expected and there were things about what he had said that left her puzzled. 

"Why would you be sorry?" she queried warily. "You're probably thinking I'm really sick, aren't you?"

Harry looked uncomfortable. 

"At first, I thought you must have been out of your mind, especially when I heard Snape had tried to seduce you at Christmas time."

Hermione winced. Here it comes, she thought. He's going to accuse me of using Ron. Of being crazy for going back to Severus.

Harry continued. 

"But looking back, when I saw you with him you looked happy. Snape of all people looked happy too! Then when I thought about it, I realised you were probably the reason why he's been less of a bastard lately. I don't believe he put a spell on you at all. Perhaps Ron wasn't meant for you, after all," he added quietly.

Hermione looked uncomfortable and her cheeks were slightly pink. 

"I didn't mean to hurt Ron, Harry," she said urgently. “I wasn't using him or anything - I tried to love him but in the end I couldn't. Then Professor Snape told me he was sorry and that he loved me after all - I decided to give him a second chance. I can't explain it," Hermione gave a bemused shrug, "but when I'm with him I feel... I don't know how to say it. My life feels better because he's in it - he's not so bad, once you get to know him."

Harry gave her a rueful smile. 

"Snape told me before that you were the part of him he'd never realised he had missed. I think he really loves you, Herm."

Hermione's face went pinker. Severus had said that to Harry? Maybe there wouldn't be so much dislike between them in the future. Then she shook herself. There wouldn't be much of a future if she didn't get to Dumbledore's office in time to stop Sirius from ruining everything.

"Harry, I've got to get to Dumbledore's office! I have to tell him my side of the story and that it was Draco who pushed me!" she said urgently. 

Hermione pushed the covers of the bed aside but the room spun around her again. She could have screamed in frustration. Damn her body for betraying her like this - it was painfully obvious that she wasn't going anywhere. She leant back on her pillow and the movement this time made her slightly nauseous. Obviously her panic was agitating her body and she tried to calm down, but she couldn't help but feeling anguish for Severus.

She stared at Harry, her eyes slightly wild. 

"Harry - you have to go to Dumbledore's office - you've got to stop Sirius! Please! He'll probably try and get Severus banished from the school or something."

Harry's eyes were grave and he nodded. 

"I'll do what I can," he began to say when suddenly there was a soft hissing sound in the infirmary. 

"What's that?" he said uneasily and he turned around, Hermione looking across the room as well.

They were both startled to see an enormous snake gliding across the floor over to them. There was something else unusual about it for it was a rich green colour, with a bright silver pattern on its back that seemed to be glowing.

"Harry, can you speak to it?" Hermione asked him carefully, never taking her eyes off the snake as it paused on the floor by her bed, coiling neatly then raising its head gracefully to stare at her with beady black eyes. 

"This isn't a snake I've read about in 'Reptiles Natural & Magical'." She had always been uneasy by Harry's gift of Parseltongue that he had 'inherited' from Voldemort but now would be a good time for him to use it.

Harry had his hand on his wand but as he warily stared at the snake he was aware that the look in its eyes was somehow familiar. Then he realised it reminded him of the look in Fawkes eyes - a look from a creature that was unbelievably ancient, yet wise, though there was a look of shrewd cunning in the snakes black eyes as well.

"This isn't just any old snake, Hermione" Harry said slowly. "I think, I think it's a Slytherin Snake."

-Yesssss, Boy-Who-Lived- the snake hissed, amusement in the black eyes as it looked at him.

"I can hear you!" Hermione exclaimed. "But I don't have Parseltongue," she added quickly in confusion. The snake turned to look back at her.

-You hearrrr me, Gryffffindorrr girrl, becaussse you are pppartner to Head of Ssslytherin. You arrre loyal to him and ssso I come becaussse you want to help him. He isss in danger from the dddog."

"Sirius!" Hermione and Harry both said aloud. Hermione was amazed at having somehow summoning this snake, which appeared to represent Slytherin. She had never heard of such a thing, nor had Severus ever mentioned it. Perhaps it was a closely guarded secret - but how could it help her now?

"Pardon me, Sir Snake," Hermione said carefully, "but I'm too weak to get out of bed."

The snake undulated impatiently on the floor.

-Helppp you I can- it hissed and then suddenly shrunk until it was the size of a small garden snake, glowing a bright green now. It glided quickly over to the bedside table and made its way up to the top and then moved so it was just inches away from Hermione's arm. She watched it carefully and it seemed to sense her unease for it hissed softly at her.

-Trussst me, Gryfffindor girl-

"All right," Hermione replied and then the green snake moved and wound itself quickly around her arm like an exotic bracelet. The snake touched its head to her wrist but did not bite her. However, a sudden surge of strength flooded through her, making her feel as though she could do anything.

-Come!- the snake said urgently and her mind decided, Hermione got out of bed. 

"Let's go!" she said determinedly to Harry, who was staring wide-eyed at his suddenly rejuvenated friend.

Madam Pomfrey came rushing across to them. 

"Hermione, what is the meaning of this - oh!" 

The nurse put a hand up to her mouth at the sight of the glowing green snake on Hermione's arm, which hissed warningly at Madam Pomfrey.

Hermione smiled reassuringly at her. 

"It's all right, really... it came here to help me and has made me feel five times stronger than usual. But right now I have to go and help Professor Snape - it's really important," she added quietly and with conviction.

Madam Pomfrey looked as though she was going to protest then sighed. 

"Very well. Go then, child - but come back here afterwards!"

"Thanks - I will!" Hermione said and then she, the snake on her arm and Harry were hurrying off to the Headmasters office.

TBC


	21. Of Snakes and Questions

There were many mixed feelings in Harry as he and Hermione set off towards Dumbledore's office. Before tonight, the roles of people at Hogwarts had been fairly clear in his mind.

Professor Snape was not someone Harry would really trust, or put his neck out for. 

On the other hand, despite his chequered past, Sirius Black was certainly someone Harry would trust. Sirius had become a surrogate father for Harry and at times had been a welcome buffer between his relatives and him.

But now Harry feared the strong dislike Sirius had for Snape had clouded his judgement, for Sirius was clearly willing to believe that Professor Snape only had evil intent towards Hermione. If Sirius had seen the vigil that the professor had kept at Hermione's side, Harry had the suspicion that he would have derisively said it was because of a 'guilty conscience'.

In Hermione's time at Hogwarts she had been involved in many perilous and exciting adventures, but always from a firm ‘Gryffindor perspective' and with the occasional aid towards her and her friends from various Gryffindor artefacts. But now that the threads of her life had become bound up with those of Severus, it was startling in her mind to realise she had become entitled to aid from an embodiment of Slytherin. Such a thing had not happened before to a Gryffindor, Hermione was sure.

There were partnerships between the houses, but if Slytherins happened to look outside of their circles for a suitable mate, it was Ravenclaws to whom their attention turned to as their ambitious, clever minds sometimes ran parallel to those from Slytherin. One time Severus had told her one night in his bed that while his father Damien was from a long line of Slytherins, his mother Selena was a Ravenclaw.

So there was no Gryffindors at all in the family tree? Hermione had lightly teased him. 

At that Severus had raised his black eyebrows and looked down that nose of his at her. 

"Certainly not!" he had said dryly. "No Snape in his right mind would ever be partnered with someone from such a glory- seeking, foolhardy (here he had paused to kiss the nape of her neck), nosy, goody-goody house such as Gryffindor."

"You left out 'courageous', 'brave', 'clever' and 'charming'," Hermione had advised him. "Well, I'm sure my family would not want me to be with someone from such a sneaky, cunning, sly, underhand (she had paused to kiss his nose), two-faced house such as Slytherin!" she countered in return.

Severus had smirked at her. 

"You left out 'intelligent', 'resourceful', 'ambitious' and 'keepers of knowledge… forbidden to others'," he had murmured silkily, his hands drifting over her body.

"Well, why don't you 'educate' me then," Hermione had breathed.

"Oh, I intend to," Severus had purred.

Hermione broke away from her reverie, blushing slightly. This wasn't the time for daydreams of that kind. She had strayed from the original topic of her thoughts, which was that she was probably the first Gryffindor ever to have the aid of the Snake of Slytherin, which was currently twined quietly around her arm.

When Hermione and Harry approached the phoenix-guarded staircase to Dumbledore's tower they paused. 

"Candy floss!" she said firmly. 

However, there was no response from the phoenix, no indication that this password was the right one.

"Don't say Dumbledore has changed the password again this week!" Harry grumbled. "Or perhaps he doesn't want any visitors right now," he added with a darker look on his face.

The snake suddenly lifted its head and stared at the entrance, its green head weaving slightly from side to side in concentration.

-Passsword today isss…- The snake paused and then there was an irritated look in its black eyes.

-Fluffffy bunniessss- it hissed in a tone of sour disgust as if it was beneath the dignity of the snake to say such words.

-Alwaysss for Dumbledore the cute and cuddddly passsswords...- the snake grumbled to itself as the phoenix creaked and started its majestic spinning to reveal the staircase. However, when they ascended the stairs they found the door to Dumbledore's office was locked with powerful wards.

* * * * *

Dumbledore looked at Severus intently. 

"Were you responsible for Hermione's fall down your stairs?" he asked softly.

Severus stared blankly at the Headmaster and his words were slow in his baritone voice. 

"No. I do not push people down staircases. It lacks finesse. Hermione had left my quarters and a few minutes later I heard her yell. I immediately ran out and saw her lying at the bottom of my stairs. I was horrified. I checked to see if she was alive. I was relieved to see she was."

Sirius grunted almost in disappointment and Remus frowned at him sharply.

"So, you did not witness her fall then?" Dumbledore asked.

"No."

"Mmm. What was young Hermione doing in your quarters?" Dumbledore asked gently.

In a flat voice Severus said, "I asked her back for some hot chocolate before she went to bed. We can only have time alone at the end of the day."

Remus looked meaningfully at Sirius. "Told you so!" he whispered and Sirius scowled at him.

"What are your feelings towards Hermione?" Dumbledore asked casually.

The corners of Professor Snape's thin mouth curved upwards slightly when he replied, "I love her. I would crawl across broken glass for a smile from her and consider it a small price to pay."

Intrigued, Dumbledore asked him, "Does she truly return your feelings, then?"

"Yes... she gave me a second chance after I wronged her. I will not forget that."

Dumbledore smiled gently but Sirius snarled something unintelligible and when Remus tried to shush him he snapped aloud, "I will not be silent in this! He coerced her, I know he did!"

Dumbledore turned to peer at Sirius with reproof. 

"Sirius, I must ask you to govern your temper during these proceedings."

There was a sudden crash as the door of Dumbledore's office slammed open and Hermione and Harry strode in, pale yet determined looks on their faces. There was silence and then Sirius and Remus turned around in their chairs to gape at the two Gryffindors. Dumbledore looked briefly taken aback while Severus stayed in his chair and stared unblinkingly ahead.

"Hermione!" Sirius and Remus both exclaimed in astonishment.

"Are you all right?" Remus asked her, amazement on his face. How had she recovered so quickly, he wondered. He had to admire her pluck in coming here, though.

"Yes," Hermione replied shortly, her glance darting over to Severus who had his back to her. A slight shiver ran down her spine. There was something not right about him, she could sense it. What had they done to him?

Then Dumbledore spoke to her. 

"Miss Granger, while I am pleased to see you have recovered so quickly, I must ask what is the meaning of your presence as well as Harry's here," he said sternly, then blinked when he glanced at her arm and saw the snake there, watching him with ancient eyes.

"Hermione, do you have any idea of what you are bearing on your arm?" Dumbledore said softly.

Sirius looked at Hermione's arm in surprise and briefly swore.

In a resolute voice Hermione said, "Yes, Headmaster. It is the Snake of Slytherin - when I woke a little while ago, I heard that Sev- Professor Snape was to be questioned but I was too weak to move. The Snake suddenly appeared to give me strength to come here, for it said Professor Snape was in trouble – from Professor Black."

Dumbledore raised his eyebrows. 

"Fascinating," he murmured. "But Severus is not in trouble - it has been established that he did not push you down the stairs or has evil intent towards you. It must be asked though my dear; how did you fall down the stairs?"

Hermione felt the eyes of Sirius and Remus on her as she answered shortly, "Draco pushed me down the stairs." 

She cast a worried glance at Severus, not caring if they were watching her do so. Why hadn't he acknowledged her presence? The Snake of Slytherin was clearly agitated as it was weaving its head from side to side and glaring at Sirius, who eyed it with mistrust.

She continued. 

"Draco picked a quarrel with me and when I defended myself, he shoved me. I think it was deliberate on his part, because I lost my balance and fell down the stairs."

Dumbledore straightened in his chair and frowned, while there were angry looks on the faces of Remus and Sirius.

"I knew Malfoy would go too far one day," Remus said shortly.

"This will not go unpunished," Dumbledore said heavily.

Harry spoke up. 

"Ah, Headmaster?" he said carefully, his voice trailing off as he pointed at the unmoving Potions master, his curiosity having got the better of him. Harry wondered with unease whether he had he been placed under an interrogative spell. 

"He has been given Veritaserum, Harry," Dumbledore said calmly. "It will wear off in a short while."

"What?" Hermione said in alarm and the snake hissed angrily at Dumbledore.

Harry was taken aback. He remembered how Barty Crouch had been questioned under the influence of Veritaserum by Dumbledore - the blank expression on his face and the flat, emotionless voice relating his crimes. He remembered too how Professor Snape had threatened to put Veritaserum in his pumpkin juice in the belief that Harry had been in his storeroom, but Harry now felt queasy at the thought of the professor being questioned this way.

Hermione was horrified. She couldn't think of anything more humiliating than to be questioned that way, and what a blow to Professor Snape's pride it must have been. How could they do that to him? Why wouldn't have he been believed? Was this why the Snake was worried on Severus' behalf; being rendered vulnerable by the Veritaserum in the presence of an enemy. 

She took a concerned step towards Severus but Sirius suddenly stood up, scowling at her.

"Dumbledore did the right thing - but look at yourself, girl! Are you even a true Gryffindor anymore - here you are wearing that snake like a goddamn bracelet, consorting with Snape when I warned you repeatedly about him! Didn't you learn your lesson when he cast you aside before? Didn't that mean anything to you?"

Hermione glared at Sirius, incensed enough not to care she was talking back to a professor in front of the Headmaster. 

"It's none of your business! He said he was sorry and we decided to start over - we haven't regretted it yet."

"How can you love that slimy git?" Sirius spat, ignoring the protest from Remus and the frown from Dumbledore. "He's a Slytherin, for Merlin's sake. A snake at heart like they all are - see for yourself!"

He grabbed his wand but before he could do anything, the Snake of Slytherin hissed some words that not even Harry could translate properly - and where Sirius had been was now a big black dog that tumbled onto the floor. 

It barked in surprise and anger as it got to its feet, and then there was a look of concentration in its eyes as it set out to transform back into a human. When nothing happened, it barked angrily at the snake. The snake hissed angrily back at the dog.

-Sstay that way you will, until the moon hassss waxed five times. Attack Head of Sssslytherin again and you will regret it, yesss?"

The dog opened its mouth to bark again then thought twice about it, lying down and resting its head on its paws in a grumpy, miserable mood.

Five months! Harry thought in consternation. That was a bit harsh... but perhaps it would give him time to cool his temper.

Hermione's face was grim. She couldn't help feeling sorry for Sirius though; but he had had no right to say the things he had said.

Dumbledore looked at the dog sternly. 

"Raising your wand against another wizard without just cause is wrong - especially with the intention to transform him into an animal. Your dislike for Severus has clouded your judgement and while the relationship between Severus and Hermione is certainly, er, unorthodox, I believe the affection between them to be genuine. She is however, not underage and it is not for us to interfere. Therefore you are to accept your punishment as a true wizard would."

The dog whined softly, looking chastened.

Then Dumbledore looked at Hermione gently. 

"You are to be commended for your loyalty to Severus - he is fortunate to have you at his side. I only hope he will forgive me one day for his ordeal. It would be best if you were to take him back to his quarters - he will feel at ease when he comes to in his own surroundings."

Hermione nodded, starting to feel tired again despite the strength she had been given. What a night. 

"All right. Thank you, Headmaster," Hermione said and went over to Severus who gave no indication that he knew she was there. But when she looked at his face (shivering inside at the blank look there), his dark eyes blinked a few times and there were the faint signs of a struggle in them.

"It's all right," Hermione said, gently placing a hand on his shoulder and helping him to stand, though she wondered how she was going to get him back to his quarters like this.

The snake looked up at her thoughtfully.

-Do not worrrrry, I will tttttake you both there- it hissed and moving quickly adjusted itself until it was coiled around the arm of Severus as well as herself. 

There was a shimmer of green light and then the next thing a surprised Hermione knew, she and Severus were both standing in his bedroom. There was no sign of the Snake of Slytherin except for a bracelet on her arm that hadn't been there before. 

Hermione was grateful for its help, and when she thought about it, the ordeal of being questioned under Veritaserum would be something that Slytherins would loathe and fear.

The other wizards stared at where Hermione and Severus had just been standing.

"Fascinating!" Dumbledore murmured.

"I think I'll have to tell Madam Pomfrey that Hermione won't be coming back to the infirmary tonight," Harry said thoughtfully.

The dog growled under its breath but subsided when Remus frowned down at him. 

"If you don't behave, Sirius, I won't be helping your wife with your children," Remus said dryly. "Especially when they start crying in the middle of the night." 

The dog shivered and covered its eyes with its paws at that, chastened.

TBC


	22. And so to Sleep

When Severus had drunk the Veritaserum, a feeling of peaceful dreaminess had come over him and he had experienced a willing eagerness to answer truthfully and fully any question he would be asked. This state of mind was so unlike his normal suspicious one that a tiny part of his self managed to remain intact, and for protection it retreated far below the upper layers of his mind.

But because of the strength of the potion, even this small core of him had to make a grim effort to string coherent thoughts together. He was aware of answering Dumbledore's gentle yet persistent questions about Hermione and himself, damn him.

He was dimly aware yet helpless when there was commotion nearby, but because Dumbledore's attention had been turned away from him he was effectively mute and too helpless to act. He heard Hermione's voice nearby - was he hallucinating now for he knew that she was unconscious in the infirmary.

There was the sound of raised voices and more commotion - a dog barking... the sound of hissing... then Hermione suddenly stepped into his field of vision and he could only stare at her blankly, unable to respond. It was Hermione; somehow she was here.

He had to respond to her. 

Fight.   
Fight the potion.   
Fight it.   
Damn it, he was a Slytherin, the Head of Slytherin.   
Fight it.

Inside himself he cursed in frustration when all he could do for his efforts was blink at her.

"It's all right," he heard Hermione say softly to him, felt her hands gently clasp his shoulder and arm to get him on his feet. He couldn't decide whether it was humiliating to be helped to his feet like a child, or whether to feel disbelieved relief that he wasn't hallucinating, that Hermione was actually here.

He certainly felt amazed when he heard hissed words he didn't expect to hear in this office, saw a green light that flashed through his world and then felt a sense of dislocation. 

Suddenly he and Hermione were standing in his bedroom that was still bathed in the light of various lanterns he had lit earlier. But he was suddenly too weary to wonder how this had occurred, his head drooping slightly. He was unable to respond when after a pause Hermione murmured his name sadly and slim arms wrapped around his waist for a brief embrace.

He could not have cared less when his cloak and heavy frock coat were removed and he was gently led to sit down on his bed, which had had the covers pulled down. His shoes were removed and though he was still clad in his shirt and trousers, he was beyond caring about the impropriety of his clothes doubling for nightwear. 

After being helped to lie down, the covers tucked over him as if he was a child (though the child he had been so many years ago had never had such small gestures shown to him), Severus was asleep within moments of his head touching the pillow.

Hermione stood by the bed looking down at the sleeping man soberly. She hoped that he would be feeling better in the morning - it had given her an eerie feeling putting Severus to bed as if he was nothing more than a stiffly moving robot. He had recognised her before though, she was sure of it.

She glanced warily down at her arm. After the Snake of Slytherin had Apparated both of them here (something she had always believed was magically impossible in Hogwarts) it had vanished, leaving only a bracelet on her arm. It looked like an ordinary silver bracelet made up of small silver links joined together - however, every third link was an unusual green metal that seemed to gleam in an odd way. It was as if it was reflecting a light that did not originate in this room and another odd thing about the bracelet that she saw was that there wasn't any noticeable way for it to be removed - no clasp or anything! 

She tugged experimentally at the bracelet but it was not big enough to be pulled over her hand. She wondered uneasily why it had been given to her and what its properties were. But anyway, she couldn't do anything about it right now and she felt reasonably sure the Snake of Slytherin had meant no malice in placing it on her arm (she hoped).

Feeling weary, Hermione decided she was better off staying here rather than going back to Madam Pomfrey. What if Severus awoke in the morning with no clear memory of how he had got in his bed and no one around to provide an explanation? 'Irritable' would be too moderate a word in that case for him. She made a mental note though to go and apologise to Madam Pomfrey in the morning.

Besides, she really did not feel like trudging back through the long corridors to the infirmary (and she knew from experience how sinfully comfortable Severus' bed was). Then there was the reason that she had always wanted to wake up beside Severus in the morning, to feel his arms around her and hear the affection behind the sardonic way he talked to her.

Mind you, now that Dumbledore knew what he did, the whole school would probably know about her and Severus by breakfast time. Hermione couldn't help but wince slightly at the thought of people's reactions (thinking of how Sirius had reacted as an example) but then she shrugged. She would have to deal with it when it came. She would make sure though in the morning that Draco was punished like the rat he was, she thought with a grim smile.

But now there was a slight problem - what to wear to bed?

She didn't keep any nightgowns here and she wasn't about to sleep in her now thoroughly crumpled uniform. She thought about it and then a slightly guilty smile appeared on her face. Surely Severus wouldn't mind...

She padded quietly over to his wardrobe and careful not to make much noise opened its wooden doors. Not surprisingly, Severus hanged up his clothes with mathematical precision. Several of his heavy black frock coats were followed by neatly pressed black trousers and then his fine white shirts (also pressed) with two spare sets of his billowing black robes present also. The only garment that was different was a frock coat that was obviously for formal occasions for it was cut from cloth of a dark forest green, edged with discreet silver embroidery. Hermione took one of the white shirts off its hanger and after quietly shutting the wardrobe doors hung the shirt over a handle.

Wanting nothing more than a good nights sleep, Hermione disrobed down to her underwear, taking off her shoes and socks and then putting on the white shirt. It was far too big for her of course, but that was to be expected and she felt oddly comforted by wearing it.

Being the child of dentists that she was, she had cleaned her teeth straight after the evening meal and taking her wand out of the pocket of her uniform she went over to the spare side of the bed, yawning softly. Looking across at Severus, she noted with a softened expression that his breathing indicated that he was now in a deeper stage of sleep, his inky black hair spilling over the pillow and his features more relaxed now than they were in public. 

Hermione softly recited a spell to extinguish the various lantern lights in the room and after placing her wand against the side of the bed (where she could reach it easily if there was a magical emergency in the night) turned down the bed covers and quietly got into bed.

Then she cautiously moved so she was close enough to Severus without him rolling over and squashing her in the middle of the night (not a good thing), reaching out to softly touch his arm for a moment.

Good night, she silently wished him and then after closing her eyes she was asleep within a few minutes, her hair cascading over the pillow like a brown waterfall.

It was in the hours before dawn that Severus woke in his dark bedroom, frowning when he realised he was wearing his shirt and trousers in bed rather than his usual grey nightshirt. What the hell? He stretched and his out-flung arm touched something soft. In his half-asleep state he pulled back his hand and readied a defensive spell. Then he paused to listen and reached out a hand carefully to touch the other occupant of his bed. Yes, it was a soft, gently snoring someone whose body was as familiar to him in the dark as the back of his hand.

How had Hermione got into his bed, Severus thought, startled. The last time he had seen her was in the infirmary where she lay unconscious - then memories came flashing back. The last coherent memory though was taking Veritaserum in Dumbledore's office and after that his memories were somewhat muddled. 

It seemed that the potion had worn off (to his relief) for he felt in charge of his body again. He shuddered involuntarily and grimly vowed never to take Veritaserum again, not even if the Ministry of Magic ordered him to. That sensation of not being in full control of his senses reminded him all too clearly of when Voldemort had compelled him to do as many humiliating things as the dark wizard had felt like.

He was filled anew with an angry hurt at being made to drink the truth potion, though it seemed Dumbledore had had a valid reason. But did the Headmaster at heart truly see him as nothing but an ex-Death Eater, someone never to be fully trusted?

Then his expression softened as he considered the sleeping Gryffindor next to him. He was impatient to learn how she had recovered so quickly and how she had contrived to bring him back to his bedroom (since Apparating was impossible within Hogwarts).

Severus shifted close and without managing to wake her he slipped an arm around her waist, gently moulding his long body against her back, breathing in the smell of her hair that was peach scented from the shampoo she used. Hermione stopped snoring for a moment, mumbling something in her sleep then went back to snoring. Severus was amused rather than offended by the fact that she seemed to be wearing one of his shirts. Wearing his clothes indeed, the impudent baggage. He was content for now to just hold her in the dark.

When Hermione awoke, she did what she usually did first thing in the morning and had a stretch to get the kinks out of her muscles. However, she promptly heard a masculine grumble behind her as her elbow hit a firm body. She blinked then remembered. Oh yes, she was in the bed of Severus and stretching that way had not been a very good idea…

TBC


	23. Waking

Hermione's eyes widened. She turned around as quickly as she could, given that she was slightly tangled in the linen sheets and there was a familiar arm clasping her around her waist. 

A dim dawn light shone through the sole diamond-paned window in the bedroom, enough for her to see the self-aware glitter in the black eyes of Severus as he looked at her. Looking at her alert features, beloved though they were, Severus had the sudden suspicion that she was a morning person, an evil entity to be avoided by night owls such as himself.

"I didn't mean to hit you," she said contritely, raising a hand to carefully touch his face. "Are you all right?" 

There was a double meaning to her words. She was also asking about his general well-being as well - had the effects of the Veritaserum worn off?

Severus seized her hand and kissed the palm roughly, which sent a tingling sensation through her. 

"Yes," he said tersely and then touched her forehead gently, pushing back strands of her bushy hair. "But you… you gave me grey hairs when I found you at the bottom of my stairs."

"Draco was there in the corridor after I left you. He picked a fight and when I told him what I thought of him, he pushed me and I slipped then fell down the stairs," Hermione explained grimly.

"What?" Severus breathed, his body tensing and rage rising up inside of him. She could have broken her neck and it was because of Malfoy? 

"There will be a new word for 'punishment' when I am through with him," he growled.

Hermione almost felt pity for Draco. 

"Dumbledore knows about it," she said soberly.

"Mmph!" Severus snorted, implying that Dumbledore's punishments were too soft in his opinion.

"Has the Veritaserum worn off completely?" Hermione asked quietly, her eyes searching his face.

His mouth twisting slightly, Severus said, "I believe so. But to make sure, ask me a personal question. But not too personal, please."

Hermione thought about it and then there was a deceptively innocent look in her brown eyes. 

"How old are you?"

"None of your business!" he growled automatically. 

Hermione nodded. 

"You're back to normal, I think," she said wryly. 

Severus raised his eyebrows. 

"I see you're back to your impertinent self as well", he said and Hermione smiled and moved her head slightly so she could kiss him, snuggling close to his warm body. So much had happened since the last time they had kissed yesterday, but she was relieved to see he had recovered. Lying here next to him was giving her mind several pleasurable and naughty thoughts as well.

His arms tightened around her as he returned the kiss, feeling as though he was a thirsty man who had just found water. When they paused for breath, Hermione propped herself on an elbow, looking at him questioningly. Despite wanting to have her wicked way with him so to speak, there were things she needed to know first.

"Why were you given Veritaserum - surely Dumbledore would have trusted you? How aware were you?"

He looked grim and a hand of his that had found its way underneath the shirt she was wearing clenched into a fist before moving to stroke her back restlessly. 

"I was told it was to ensure it would be the best way to make Sirius (he fairly spat the word) believe I hadn't coerced you in some depraved way, but I wonder if Dumbledore does trust me that well." 

He was silent and for a moment his face was shuttered.

"He should. I trust you," Hermione said quietly, dropping a kiss on his high forehead.

"My one and only," he said softly. 

It was strange to feel that he was right now with the one person in the world that actually gave a damn if he lived or died, who would make an effort to cheer him up if he was in one of his foul moods.

He continued in a flat voice. 

"I was only partially aware of what was going on - I had no control over what I said, though probably Sirius was disappointed at not hearing what he wanted to hear. I couldn't move by myself - and I assume you're the reason I woke up here still clothed?"

Hermione looked sheepishly at him. 

"You looked so tired - I thought it wouldn't be the end of the world if you still had some clothes on. You have enough spare clothes in your wardrobe anyway."

His mood changing, Severus looked meaningfully at the white shirt of his that she was wearing, his hand wandering playfully over the buttons. 

"Yes, I can see you have been looking in my wardrobe. More than looking as well."

"Well, I didn't have any nightgowns to wear and I wasn't going to sleep in my uniform," she mumbled.

"You did not think of the 'no clothes' option?" he murmured wickedly and his caressing hand moved downwards, his desire for her demanding an outlet as soon as possible. 

Hermione rolled her eyes. 

"I knew you were going to say that!" 

She moved an arm slightly and a gleam from the bracelet on it caught his eye. He didn't remember seeing it before. There were rules about wearing jewellery... but wait. It did not look like an ordinary bracelet she was wearing. There was something about it and then he froze, desire fading for the moment. If it was what he thought it was…

"Hermione, how did you come by that bracelet?" he said urgently, nearly but not quite touching it.

Hermione hesitated. 

"That may be difficult to explain," she admitted.

"Then please try, Hermione," he said softly. "It is very important that you do so, do you understand?"

Hermione nodded. 

"Yes - though I will need some questions answered about it as well, I think. When I woke up in the infirmary, Harry was there - he said that Dumbledore had taken you back to his office for questioning about us. He was more tolerant than I thought he would be," she added thoughtfully.

"I have to admit I was surprised by his attitude as well," Severus said grudgingly, for it did not come naturally to him to say anything favourable about Potter. But he had to admit to himself that he was relieved about Potter's attitude - but only because it meant that Hermione would not face accusations from her friend, of course.

Hermione continued. 

"I wanted to go to Dumbledore to explain my side of the story but I was still too weak to move, even after the potion Madame Pomfrey gave to help me. I had asked Harry to go and explain on my behalf, when suddenly there was a large green snake that I didn't recognise coming towards us on the floor."

Severus' obsidian eyes looked alert. 

"When you say 'suddenly' do you mean it had Apparated into the infirmary?"

"I'm not sure - I hadn't seen it do that," Hermione admitted. "It talked to Harry and I - I could understand it even though I don't have the gift of Parseltongue like Harry. We found out it was the "Snake of Slytherin' and that I could understand its language because I was your partner and was loyal to you - and then the snake said you were in danger."

"The Snake of Slytherin!" Severus whispered, looking at her with an almost wary respect, which was unusual for him. 

"Not much is known about it and only a few times in the history of Hogwarts has it appeared to grant its favour to those it deems worthy - and never to anyone outside of Slytherin. It is a secret we rarely share. The Dark Lord sought its recognition - but failed. After this your name will be put in the annals of Slytherin for future generations to know your name."

Hermione blinked. 

"Thank you," she said cautiously. "When I said I wasn't able to get out of bed it, um, shrank and then came up onto the bed and coiled around my arm. Somehow it transferred strength to me - I felt I could do anything. It urged me to hurry, so Harry and I went as fast as we could to Dumbledore's office. Madam Pomfrey didn't have much choice about letting us go."

"No - not if she knew what was good for her," Severus said dryly.

Hermione continued. "But when we got to his office I saw - I could see - there was something wrong with you," she said quietly. "I couldn't believe when I was told you had been given Veritaserum. I told them about Draco; and Dumbledore said he would be punished. Dumbledore recognised the Snake of Slytherin and then said that it had been established that you did not have 'evil intent' towards me.” 

“However, Sirius practically went berserk, asking me whether I was a true Gryffindor anymore (here she swallowed and Severus gently kissed her mouth, feeling a cold rage towards Sirius), saying that you were a snake at heart just like every other Slytherin."

She went on. 

"Then Sirius went for his wand - I think he was going to turn you into something, but before he could, the Snake of Slytherin hissed something I couldn't understand."

"What happened then?" Severus asked, his eyes gleaming in cold anticipation, though he was furious at the thought of Sirius daring to attempt to transform him into something while he was as helpless as an infant (perhaps Sirius had been placed in the wrong house after all, something he had often suspected).

"Sirius was transformed into his Animagus form and told by the snake that he would be staying that way for the next five months! Dumbledore reprimanded him as well for turning his wand on you," Hermione said soberly.

There was a smile of dark satisfaction on the face of Severus. True, this punishment was not the same as the pleasing revenge fantasies he had of Sirius hauled back to Azkaban in chains, but the thought of Black dealing with fleas for months on end had its own charm.

Hermione continued. 

"Dumbledore asked me to take you back here and that he hoped you would one day forgive him for putting you through your ordeal."

Severus' eyes narrowed at that but he did not reply.

"I was wondering how I would be able to bring you here, then the Snake of Slytherin somehow Apparated us here and then vanished. When I looked at my arm I saw the bracelet - I couldn't take it off," she said warily, lifting her arm and tugging at the bracelet as a demonstration. "Do you know why it's there?"

He nodded. "It signifies that you will be under protection - always - and also certain gifts will be granted to you."

Hermione looked intrigued. 

"Really? What kind of gifts?" 

Would it be something like the ability of Parseltongue, she wondered.

Severus looked thoughtful. 

"In my records, each bracelet that was granted by the Snake of Slytherin had different abilities. I will try and ascertain the ones contained within this one."

His pale hand hovered carefully over the bracelet and he closed his eyes for a moment, concentrating. Then he opened his eyes. 

"Interesting!" he murmured. "A protection from all curses and the ability to Apparate anywhere - even here in Hogwarts."

TBC


	24. Shirts, Coffee and Combs

Hermione experienced a mixture of relief and excitement - relief that the bracelet would not be a shackle as part of her mind had feared and excitement of having these extra abilities granted to her. It would be interesting to see if she could Apparate with other people if she held their hands.

The bracelet seemed to feel lighter on her wrist as well - now she could venture to admire the gleaming silver links and the enigmatic sparkle from the green links too.

"Certainly the protection from curses will come in handy," she mused, although she knew of several people now dead who could have benefited from that in the dark years when Voldemort terrorised the wizard world. 

"The ability to Apparate anywhere in Hogwarts will be useful as well," she said with a gleam in her eyes.

"I do not like the look in your eyes," Severus said dryly. "That is the 'I will be up to no good with Potter and Weasley', look I see."

"Look, if we three got into trouble over the years it was for good reasons at the time!" Hermione retorted lightly.

Severus raised an eyebrow meaningfully at her. 

"Really? Rule breaking… extreme nosiness... unauthorised use of time-turners... stealing from my stores... setting me on fire."

Hermione flushed despite herself. 

"Oh. Those things. Well, in that last instance, I thought you were trying to put a hex on Harry at his first Quidditch match."

"Ah, so it *was* you!" Severus growled, leaning close in a threatening manner though there was a gleam in his eyes. 

"A colleague of mine afterwards remembered hearing a young female voice recite a spell before I was distracted by the matter of my robes being set on fire. I could not find out who it was, though I believed you were probably responsible."

"I'm sorry," Hermione said sincerely, "though as I said I thought I had a good reason at the time."

"Good reason or not, I cannot let your confession go… unpunished," he said silkily, his eyes dropping to the sweet curves of her body that his white shirt on her failed to completely hide. Hermione feeling herself blush at his simmering scrutiny and the tone of his words, for his voice was a sensual weapon he had no qualms about using towards her. 

"You will be staying here in bed until I am quite sure you have regretted your misdemeanours."

His tone though altered slightly and there was a faint smile on his face as he tilted his head and looked at her. 

"I believe I could get used to waking up beside you in the morning, Hermione," he murmured.

Hermione smiled with some unexpected shyness back. 

"I could as well - I'm tired of all this sneaking about."

"Even if you do snore," he continued.

"I do not snore!" Hermione immediately protested.

"You most certainly do. Not that loudly though," he conceded. "It would be separate beds indeed if that was the case."

"Oh, you Slytherin," Hermione said, half-laughing and silenced his next comment by kissing his mouth soundly.

Severus deepened the kiss, urging her mouth to open to him, his hand moving to cup and caress her breast. She moaned and his body hardened and pulsed between his legs, craving her warmth. 

"It has been too many days since I have had you," he muttered between kisses. "Don't deny me now…"

"I'm not going anywhere right now," Hermione assured him, her breathing coming faster like his. There were too many clothes between them. She reached and pulled his shirt out of his black trousers while he pushed a long leg restlessly between her thighs with the firm intention of pushing her on her back.

However, she anticipated this and scooted back over the bed, sitting up. His eyes gleamed at what he deemed her provocative avoidance of him and then widened when she slowly unbuttoned her shirt. No, he would not be washing that shirt in a hurry, he thought as she took it off with deliberate care and cast it aside, revealing herself to his hungry black gaze.

Severus could never get tired of seeing Hermione this way in his bed and after her near-tragic 'accident' at the hands of Malfoy, the pleasure of making love to her took on new layers of meaning now. He had nearly lost her and he realised how much of a wasteland his life would have been if Hermione had died. So it was that his hands were tender when he reached out to draw her close to him. 

He was not good at telling her he loved her - he had always mocked the romantic nonsense said between lovers and so found it hard to say those words to Hermione at times. But he believed she understood the many other ways in which he said he loved her.

Deciding to take charge, Hermione pushed Severus down so that he was lying on his back on the bed, her body moving over his. Hermione went to remove his white shirt with teasing slowness, kissing her way down his chest and enjoying the slightly salty taste of his skin on her lips. Ensnared despite himself, Severus shifted his long body under hers in a way that was both a demand and a plea. 

Hermione could feel his hardness nudging her belly and heard the raggedness of his breath against her neck, his clever hands moving to caress and probe her in revenge until she was panting and damp for him. She had wanted though to take as much time as she could showing how much she loved and desired him before they coupled... oh, let it be soon… please… part of her mind begged. 

After she had seen him diminished and helpless as a child in Dumbledore's office, part of her wanted extra conviction too that he was restored to his usual sardonic, brilliant, impatient self. Oh yes, he was definitely impatient she thought as he removed the last of her clothes with a satisfied growl, his black eyes glittering up at her.

With the mutual demands of their bodies unable to be refused no longer, it was his turn to shift Hermione over to her back. Casting aside his remaining clothes, Severus moved his body determinedly over Hermione's willing one and after claiming her mouth fiercely, he parted her legs and thrust into her warmth. They both moaned at the touch and intimate feel of each other again, their limbs twining together greedily. 

Their bodies moved together in a frantic rhythm with gasps and muffled cries coming from both of them, Severus spilling himself hotly in her with a harsh cry when he came... her cry of pleasure echoing in his ears moments after. Content and sated, they then rested in each other’s arms to catch their breath, pressing soft kisses occasionally against the face of the other.

Although they were tempted to stay in bed longer afterwards, they nevertheless both got up and went to get dressed, mock squabbling over who got to use the bathroom first (Severus won). 

When they were both dressed, Severus made himself a strong cup of coffee as was his habit in the mornings, then came back to stare meditatively out of his bedroom window at the distant mountains. Hermione suspected that you could probably make a spoon stand in his coffee with the strong, bitter smell filling the room.

"So, does that coffee double as paint remover?" she remarked wryly as she went to stand beside him.

"Insulting my morning coffee results in an automatic removal of twenty points," he remarked dryly, turning to look down at her. "It helps me get up in the mornings to face all those hormone-driven horrors in my classes - present company excluded; perhaps. I hope you see your continued refusal to like coffee as a serious flaw on your part."

"If it's not hot chocolate then I'm not interested," Hermione patiently pointed out with an amused smile on her face, having had this kind of conversation with him before.

Severus grimaced. "

She only likes sweet drinks, Merlin help me!"

Hermione wished she had her comb with her, as her hair felt and probably looked a mess. 

"I suppose my hair looks a real fright," she sighed.

"You are right, it does," Severus said sardonically, running a critical gaze over her hair.

Hermione pulled a face. "Thanks."

"Well, you did ask me, you silly girl," Severus said dryly. "Sit down," he said in his 'command' voice, pointing at the bed. 

Surprised, Hermione did so, watching as he swept over to his dresser, putting down his coffee cup and then picking up his comb that was carved from black wood. He looked at it critically, frowned and then spoke a few words. The comb flared brightly for a second and as a result Hermione saw the strands of black hair in the teeth of the comb disappear as if they had been burnt away.

One way to clean a comb, Hermione thought, then she looked quizzically at him. "You want to comb my hair?"

"Yes. You see, this gives me another reason to touch you," he murmured as he came over to sit on the edge of the bed beside her. 

He picked up lengths of her hair and steadily yet gently began to comb her long brown hair.

Hermione had to admit to herself that it was nice having someone else comb her hair for once and there was something sensual about Severus doing it. 

Well, she could think of worse things than being in his bedroom having her hair combed by him. She had grown fond of his quarters and as a concession to her he had put an extra towel in the bathroom and another wing-backed chair by the fireplace. She had even introduced him to the custom of toasting marshmallows on the fire (although at first he hadn't seen the point).

Having momentarily wondered what had possessed him to do something so domestic as combing Hermione's hair despite his earlier comment, Severus did have to admit it was soothing to do so. 

It was something pleasant to distract him before he set out to pursue his main objective of the day - dealing with Malfoy.

TBC


	25. Revelations and Retribution

"There. All done," Severus said smoothly, having run a critical eye over her hair that now fell in a neater mass down her back.

Hermione patted her hair briefly and then gave Severus an approving nod.

"Thank you," she said, smiling at him in the way that always seemed to make his heart flutter in an odd way (though he didn't reveal this on his face).

"As much as I would like to spend the whole day here with you, I have Malfoy to deal with," he said grimly.

"I want to come as well," Hermione began, sitting up straight, but he stopped her by putting a finger lightly over her mouth.

"No," he said softly. "I will see to this personally."

Hermione felt like protesting then reconsidered. It was up to the heads of the respective houses in the end to punish students when they were out of line, with the Headmaster overseeing when necessary. She would just have to keep her revenge fantasies to herself.

"All right," she conceded and he nodded.

"I will see you no doubt in the Great Hall at breakfast time," he said and then brown and obsidian eyes looked at each other soberly, their thoughts unsaid. In the Great Hall there was a good chance everyone would be speculating about them both - wondering, gossiping, looking. How many would react with such vehemence as Sirius had?

Severus lifted a hand to brush her cheek lightly for a second.

"I know you can fight your own battles," he said abruptly, "but if anyone gives you a hard time like that misbegotten Marauder, just say the word and they will regret it."

"Thanks," Hermione answered quietly, touched. 

Professor Snape vs the rest of Hogwarts? Poor Hogwarts, she thought. However, there was support to be found already from Harry and of a kind from Dumbledore. Professor Lupin, too, had seemed to show tolerance.

After kissing Severus farewell, Hermione left his quarters. She paused though when she got to the stairs, filled with an unwillingness to ascend them after last night. Her bracelet gleamed gently, catching her eyes and she glanced down at it.

She smiled suddenly. Why not? This would be a good place as any to test the Apparating properties of this bracelet, for the sudden thought (or was it knowledge?) rose through her mind that there would be no spoken spells required. 

A Slytherin relied on stealth to achieve goals and silent Apparating would be useful to Slytherins.

I'm not a Slytherin! Hermione said silently, imagining her statement to echo within the corridors of her mind.

There was only silence.

Hermione carefully laid her fingers over the bracelet and visualised her room with its contents, Crookshanks curled up on the end of her bed. Nothing happened, but then light and reality itself seemed to bend around her and though she had not moved it seemed she was drawn forward smoothly and easily... to her bedroom.

It had worked, she thought in elation. She didn't even feel nauseous, something she would have to tell Severus later for research reasons. 

Crookshanks was sitting on the carpet grooming himself and when the cat saw Hermione's sudden appearance, he 'mrrowed' sullenly and then ignored her. It was obvious that Crookshanks was offended by the absence of his mistress.

"Sorry, Crookshanks," Hermione said ruefully, going over to her wardrobe to change into a clean uniform. 

"Last night was eventful in more ways than one, even by my standards."

Crookshanks continued to ignore her, but the posture of the cat now indicated that it might change its viewpoint... if it felt like it, of course.

After Hermione was ready to face the day, she went down to the common room, steeling herself.

Harry and other Gryffindors that were with him looked up in surprise at her entrance.

"Hermione!" Harry exclaimed, his eyes darting involuntarily to her arm as if he half-expected the Snake of Slytherin to be there. There was a faintly puzzled look when he saw the bracelet on her wrist.

"Are you all right, and uh, is he all right?" Harry asked, stumbling slightly over the last words. 

Hermione knew that he meant Professor Snape - it was a new thing for him to show concern over that 'slimy, greasy git' as Harry had spitefully called him in the past (though not to his face if he didn't want multiple detentions).

"Everything's fine," Hermione said discreetly, nodding. "My head doesn't hurt at all." 

After checking herself in a mirror before, it was as if she had never had fallen down the stairs at all.

Harry tilted his head curiously at her. 

"When did you come back - did you sneak in?"

"Something like that," Hermione answered carefully, wondering how she was going to explain the bracelet, especially to the others who were looking at her with a mixture of concern, wariness and apprehension - as if she had changed in a way that it might be wise to fear. How much did they know?

Lavender stepped forward as if in answer to Hermione's silent thought. 

"I think Draco should be strung up by his thumbs over a fire for what he did to you," she said roundly and there were nods and mutters of agreement. 

Since his father Lucius had been sent to Azkaban with many of the other Death Eaters, Draco had been determined to imitate his father in acts of malice and cruelty.

Harry looked slightly sheepish. 

"Professor Lupin and I were all for going after Draco last night, but in the end it was decided that it would be up to Professor Snape to punish him."

There was a glint in Hermione's eyes. 

"You don't have to tell Professor Snape that."

At the mention of Professor Snape, there was an air of uneasiness in the room and Lavender frowned slightly at Hermione. 

"Look, when Harry told us everything about last night (there was an emphasis on the 'everything' and Hermione winced slightly), I put two and two together and wished it didn't add up to four. Look, when I told you to take a 'walk on the wild side' I didn't expect you to go for the Mean in Black himself!"

Hermione felt tense inside at the confirmation that Harry had revealed all, so to speak. But perhaps it was better to get everything out in the open now before rumours and whispered speculation got out of hand.

"I think it's disgusting!" Ron said loudly from his corner of the room. He had pointedly not got up when Hermione had arrived. "Going out with Snape - how gross can you get?"

There were some mutters of agreement from others.

"It's not 'gross'," Hermione countered quietly.

"But Hermione," Lavender said urgently, her eyes agitated. "This is 'Slimy Snape' we're talking about."

Hermione held her ground. 

"I know what I'm doing. I'm not underage after all and he isn't 'slimy'. He's... he's not as bad as he used to be."

Lavender looked doubtful but then she said slowly, almost reluctantly, "When I think about it he hasn't been so mean lately, and his hair almost looks normal."

There were still some sidelong looks of disgust at Hermione but then Neville spoke up. 

"I knocked over my cauldron again the other day and he didn't yell at me as nastily as he used to."

"He's stopped taking points off for the least thing," another boy offered, and there were wary nods of agreement.

Seeing that the tide was slowly turning in Hermione's favour, Ron sneered. 

"I suppose you'll think he will give you good marks! If she's dating Snape and being visited by Slytherin snakes, maybe she should be in Slytherin. It's her fault that Sirius Black will be trapped as a dog for the next five months."

"That's not true!" Harry said to Ron, frowning. "I was there Ron - Sirius was about to use his wand on Snape who was under the influence of Veritaserum at the time. That's a punishable offence and you know it."

At that, Ron got up and stormed out of the common room and a few others followed him.

Hermione bit her lip. The last thing she wanted was tension between Harry and Ron. Harry saw the look on her face and said quietly, "He'll calm down eventually, don't worry. But one thing I want to know - uh, what happened to the Snake of Slytherin? Is it still around?"

A few of the Gryffindors looked around nervously as if they expected snakes to pop out hissing from behind the furniture any moment.

"After the Snake of Slytherin Apparated Professor Snape and I back to his quarters it vanished - but left me this," Hermione said, holding up her arm to display the bracelet that shimmered gently in the light of the common room.

Distracted, Harry, Lavender and Neville crowded around her in surprise, talking all at once.

"Is it dangerous?"

"What does it do?"

"What are those green links made of?"

"Does this mean you're a Slytherin now?"

"I'm not a Slytherin!" Hermione said in exasperation. "I'm a Gryffindor and I always will be a Gryffindor. I just happen to be going out with a Slytherin."

"The Head of Slytherin, don't forget," Lavender said dryly, though there was a wry look on her face.

Hermione continued.

"Professor Snape said it will protect me from curses."

There were murmurs of surprise from the others, with further curious Gryffindors coming forward for a look.

"Hey, do you think I could have one of those bracelets?" Neville said hopefully.

Lavender raised her eyebrows. 

"You better not tell One-Eyed Moody that, or he'll be after you to test it." The paranoid, twitchy One-Eyed Moody had been kept on as an advisor, and even though the war was over he still saw dark wizards and conspiracies around each corner. 

Hermione winced.

"You're lucky to have that protection, Hermione," Harry said quietly, clearly thinking of his long-dead parents, victim of the infamous killing curse at the hands of Voldemort.

Harry peered at the bracelet. 

"Does it give you any other abilities?"

"Yes," Hermione said, trying not to sound as if she was showing off. "It can make me Apparate anywhere - even in Hogwarts."

Startled, Harry looked up at her and there were exclamations from the others. 

"Even in Hogwarts?" he echoed in surprise, a gleam in his eye. "Could I borrow that bracelet if I grovelled nicely?"

Hermione looked sheepish. 

"I'm sorr,y Harry, but there's no way for me to remove it. It looks like I'll be wearing it permanently."

Lavender's eyes widened. 

"There's no way to take it off? I don't believe it!"

Without warning, Professor McGonagall bustled into the room, her mouth pursing when she saw Hermione. 

"You should all be going to breakfast," she said in her no-nonsense manner. "Run along now. Miss Granger, come with me please."

Having no choice but to obey, Hermione quickly said goodbye to the others and followed the professor out of the common room. What was this going to be about, she wondered.

* * * * * 

Meanwhile, Draco was definitely regretting hearing the news from other Slytherins that Hermione had survived her fall down the stairs and had testified that he, Draco, was the one who had pushed her. There had been some other garbled nonsense about a snake but he hadn't bothered to pay attention, focussing on coming up with a convincing story as to how he hadn't known the stairs had been nearby for when the faculty inevitably came for him. 

There had been a feeling of disapproval from the other Slytherins - not that he had pushed Hermione, but that it was sloppy of Draco not to do the job properly so that there would be no chance of her ever testifying.

Draco was lounging in the Slytherin common room, Crabbe and Goyle in lumpish, blank attendance as always, when the door opened and Professor Snape swept in, his robes flying about him like dark wings.

The three of them immediately stood up, and at a look from the professor, Crabbe and Goyle lumbered quickly out of the room.

"Professor," Draco began carefully, but Professor Snape held up a pale hand impatiently.

"Silence! The school knows about your little escapade last night," he said softly. "What on earth were you thinking?

Draco took a gamble. "I should have been thinking that I shouldn't get caught?"

"Precisely!" Professor Snape snapped.

Draco relaxed slightly. This was Professor Snape's subtle way of showing that he approved of what Draco did. After all, the Head of Slytherin loathed the Gryffindor Trio with a passion, even though the professor had snapped at Draco when he had taunted Granger after her break up with Weasley.

Severus watched Draco with narrowed eyes. It appeared that Malfoy had not heard the full account of what happened last night or else the insolent boy would have already been making veiled references to 'liaisons with mudbloods' (which would only have given him another reason to discipline Draco). This would be to his advantage.

"Pity she didn't fall hard enough - I won't make *that* mistake again," Draco mused unguardedly and yelped in pain when suddenly Professor Snape reached out a hand and grabbed his ear.

"Listen to me Malfoy," Professor Snape hissed, his face mere inches away from Draco. "If she had fallen 'hard enough' and died I would not have rested until I had found who was responsible and personally put them in Azkaban"

"But she's just a mudblood!" Draco whined, confused.

"Silence!" Professor Snape hissed. "If you even think about laying a finger on Miss Granger again, there will be new words for pain when I am finished with you."

Draco cringed and then a light bulb went off in his head. For the professor to be this furious over the admittedly luscious Granger, it had to mean…

"I didn't know she was your mistress, sir!"

The cold fury in Professor Snape's eyes could have frozen fresh lava, and he shook Draco briefly like a rag doll. 

"She is no whore!" he said in soft menace. "As the Head of your house I will be putting a black mark in your record and it will be toilet-cleaning detention for you at night until the end of the year. In your weekends you will be assisting Filch in his duties in the forest."

With a final glare Severus released Draco's ear and swept out of the common room.

With a sullen, subdued look on his face Draco rubbed his ear carefully. If his father hadn't been foolish enough to be on the losing side in the war and sent to Azkaban, Professor Snape would have never treated him this way, he was sure of it. 

Toilet cleaning duty? Great.

TBC


	26. Disapproval

Having no choice but to obey Professor McGonagall, Hermione quickly said goodbye to the others and followed the tight-lipped teacher. What was this going to be about?

When they were both in her office, the professor sat behind her desk and brusquely indicated Hermione to sit down as well. There was agitation on the older woman's face and her voice was stiff.

"Miss Granger, Dumbledore has told me everything and while I am pleased to note your rapid recovery from your fall, I must say I am quite disappointed that a Head Girl like you is seeing Professor Snape. I am very surprised, to say the least."

Minerva was fond of Hermione in her own way and indeed had hoped that the young woman would find happiness with someone in her own circle of friends. But being with someone like Snape with his wells of bitterness inside him?

As much as Minerva had a friendship of sorts with the Head of Slytherin, he would be no easy task these days surely for any woman who chose to take him on. Let alone a young woman such as Miss Granger.

Hermione began to feel upset inside despite her stoic demeanor. It was never a good idea to be on the receiving end of Professor McGonagall's disapproval. While the verbal, disciplinary malice of Professor Snape set out to wound, Professor McGonagall's style was as blunt as a sledgehammer.

Professor McGonagall went on, not giving Hermione a chance to reply. 

"Have you considered the consequences? You have a promising career and life ahead of you, but this may never come to pass if you continue with this... liaison with the Head of Slytherin!" 

Her voice was heavy with disapproval.

Hermione, who had managed to stay impassive against the verbal dressing-down, lifted her head at that last remark.

"I will be staying here as Professor Snape's Potions apprentice after I graduate."

Professor McGonagall momentarily gaped at her then closed her mouth with a snap when Dumbledore's voice was heard from the doorway.

"There is no cause for concern, Professor McGonagall," Dumbledore said calmly as he walked into the office, a mild smile on his face.

"I believe Hermione and Severus will do well by each other. Tell me, young Hermione, how is Severus this morning?"

Hermione saw in her mind how shuttered the face of Severus had been to disguise humiliation and anger he had felt from being obliged to take Veritaserum.

"He's recovered," Hermione said neutrally. "He has gone to reprimand Draco."

"Good, good," Dumbledore said, nodding somberly. 

Professor McGonagall spoke up. 

“Albus, I cannot believe that you would condone this relationship. They are from opposing houses for heavens sake!"

The Headmaster peered down at her over his glasses. 

"A suitable partner is not always found from one’s own house as Severus discovered to his detriment with Clara Thistledark - she was a Slytherin like him but one who had been easily corrupted by Voldemort. Bear in mind too that in the future there will be new perils and new dangers. Perhaps it would be well for them to be faced by wizards and witches bred perhaps from both Gryffindor and Slytherin blood, with the best qualities from both."

Hermione couldn't help but have the uneasy feeling that she was being discussed as if she was a broodmare for some Hogwarts breeding programme, that the Headmaster was really more interested in their potential children than either her or Severus. Then she inwardly rebuked herself. That was nonsense, of course. Besides, many wizards, not just ones from Hogwarts, had died in the fight against Voldemort so naturally the senior wizards such as Dumbledore would be eager to see a new generation of wizards. 

She unconsciously shifted the bracelet on her wrist and light from the lanterns flashed from the links, drawing the attention of the older wizards.

Predictably, Professor McGonagall pursed her lips. 

"Miss Granger, although you are Head Girl you should be aware of the rules governing jewellery."

Dumbledore held up a hand and Professor McGongall stopped talking (although there was a vexed look on her face). There was a question in his eyes as he approached Hermione and peered down at her bracelet.

"It would appear that you have been granted a gift from the Snake of Slytherin, have you not?" he rumbled softly.

Professor McGonagall put a hand up to her mouth, her eyes wide.

"Yes, Headmaster," Hermione said, feeling hesitant at the thought of telling him what the bracelet could do. The ability of being able to Apparate anywhere, even in Hogwarts, was not an ability that she felt that all the faculty would appreciate.

"Fascinating," Dumbledore said after a moment with a faint frown on his face. "The ability to be immune to all curses and Apparating abilities that disregard the no-Apparating ban in Hogwarts. I should not have to say that these are gifts that should not be abused, Miss Granger."

"Yes, Headmaster," Hermione said, making an effort to only look like the obedient Head Girl from Gryffindor. 

The Headmaster gazed at her thoughtfully and then nodded as if satisfied.

"Good," he said benignly. "Now I do believe it is breakfast time - I think some scrambled eggs might be suitable for my stomach, don't you think?"

So Hermione found herself in the company of them both on her way to breakfast, perhaps to counter a backlash against her for there were many furtive and dark looks cast her way on the way to the Great Hall. 

Hermione merely lifted her chin and ignored them, determined not to be cowed.

Meanwhile Severus was grimly satisfied after dishing out punishment to Draco. He could have easily expelled him, but this way Draco would be facing taunts and jeers from other Slytherins when he cleaned their toilets (without magic of course), for Slytherins were quick to turn on those they perceived to have lost status. 

The Head of Slytherin was aware that he might be perceived as having lost status as well by making a Gryffindor his partner, for it was highly possible his colleagues would not look kindly on him (but Severus did not feel overly concerned about this - let them pick a fight if they dared!). 

On his way to the Great Hall for breakfast, Severus ran into Remus who was on his way outside to take dog-Sirius who was with him for a walk.

"Good morning, Severus," Remus said in his quiet way, looking at him intently. "How are you feeling?"

Severus was about to say something suitably sarcastic but reconsidered when he saw that Lupin genuinely meant it. There was none of the 'you filthy, perverted bastard' look in Lupin’s eyes that had been in Black's eyes last night and indeed, was still there in the flat gaze that dog-Sirius was giving him.

"Tolerable, thank you," he said shortly. 

At Lupin's side, dog-Sirius growled low in his throat but made no hostile move towards Severus.

Sometimes the best revenge was the subtle one, Severus thought. 

He smiled with rare benevolence down at the dog. 

"The fleas are bad at this time of year, I hear," he said smoothly. 

"Good day," he nodded at Remus and swept away, feeling as if he had accomplished much this day already. 

He smirked when he heard Remus behind him say in answer to the growl from dog-Sirius, "No, biting his leg would not be a good idea. What if the Snake of Slytherin is watching you?"

When Hermione sat down to breakfast she was aware of being the focus of covert stares, some of disbelief and much of disgust. How low could you go, these last looks implied, for although it had been perceived by many that Professor Snape was not as randomly nasty as he used to be, he was still loathed by many of the students. 

The very notion that one of the brightest Gryffindors in years was getting it on with the malevolent Professor Snape was abhorrent to quite a few minds.

There were some smirks from Slytherins, who felt that their Professor was no doubt keeping a firm hand on the uppity Gryffindor. Some Hufflepuffs concluded they would run off into the Dark Forest if Professor Snape looked at *them* with come-hither eyes, but many Ravenclaws took it in their stride, shrugging and pointing out that since they both had brains they might not be mismatched after all.

Many Gryffindors though regarded Hermione as some sort of traitor, including Ron, but to Hermione's surprise (and secret relief) Harry, Lavender and Neville sat nearby her in unspoken support.

When Professor Snape arrived slightly late for breakfast in his usual sinuous, overgrown-bat-like way, there were more stares than usual furtively cast in his direction, but he looked back at them in a way that suggested that if they had a problem he was more than happy to dose them with a nasty-tasting potion. The stares quickly stopped.

What were they expecting him to do, Severus silently growled, go over to Hermione and drag her off to his quarters by her hair? 

Idiots. 

Some of the other teachers at the High Table were casting the occasional disbelieving look his way as if they secretly wondered why Hermione would want to go out with him, with Minerva looking as if she had been sucking lemons.

Albus looked his way and briskly asked him how he was this morning. Severus stared at him levelly for a moment then curtly said he was fine. One day he might be able to forgive the Headmaster, but he certainly would not forget it.

Meanwhile, Lavender was making a low-voiced but forthright attempt to make Hermione see that perhaps she had made a mistake.

"Hermione, look at the way Snape scowls. You can't tell me you like a man who scowls all the time."

Hermione sighed. 

"He doesn't scowl all the time," she pointed out patiently. "Sometimes he does smile."

Lavender snorted. "Yeah, I know his smiles. There's the smile of It's Multiple Detentions For You, I Know Something And You Don't, You Imbecile and well I could go on all morning. He doesn't have a sense of humour."

Perversely, Hermione decided to shake up her well-meaning friend a bit. 

"Well, he did think it was funny when he found out I was ticklish," she mused for only Lavender's ears.

"I didn't hear that," Lavender moaned, and then coughed. "Then there's the you know what. You can't say that you really enjoy that with him, surely," she whispered.

Seeing the cheeks of a suddenly silent Hermione turn a bashful pink and her eyes taking on an unfocussed look for a second, Lavender threw up her hands in resignation. "I don't think I want to know," she sighed. 

However, she was determined to make one last try. 

"How do you know he really cares for you?" she asked. "He isn't exactly the send-flowers-and-chocolate type.

Harry, who had been listening, spoke up quietly. 

"When Hermione was unconscious, I think he would have stayed by her in the infirmary all night if he had to. I had never seen Snape as upset as he had been then."

At that, Lavender backed down and she sighed. 

"Well, it's your life."

TBC


	27. An Eventful Morning

Throughout the morning, Hermione was aware of being stared at from every direction it seemed. This made it hard at times for her to concentrate on her work but she was thankful though for the steady support of Harry.

Harry had had his own experiences of being a pariah - you never realised how much you relied on the countless day-to-day interactions with others until you were put in a social void, sometimes through no fault of your own. He was aware of puzzled looks cast his way. Why would you be supportive of Hermione since she's sleeping with your enemy, they seemed to say.

All right, the 'sleeping' part still made him feel uneasy when he thought about it, but it seemed that Hermione was bringing out a human side to the sneering Potions master, and there had to be something good about that.

Harry was sad though that Ron was avoiding Hermione. Indeed, Ron had commented privately to Harry that Hermione 'had her head screwed on the wrong way' these days (for his pride was still offended that she preferred the greasy git over him).

Though she seemed to be paler than usual, Harry felt Hermione was taking things in her stride, her chin lifted stubbornly to the world and a challenging glint in her eyes. However, she kept her otherworldly bracelet underneath her sleeves, obviously not wanting another reason for people to stare at her. 

Harry found though that a part of his mind was keenly aware of the bracelets nearby presence and he uneasily wondered at that. He wasn't a Slytherin and he doubted that Hermione was becoming a Slytherin even though others had hinted at this.

Perhaps it was because he had had part of Voldemort in him, the unwilling transfer of powers years ago on the day that left him an orphan. A sensitivity to Slytherin artefacts, perhaps? That thought didn't make him feel any better. It probably wouldn't be long before the other Slytherins heard about the bracelet.

He was right.

When he was on his way with Hermione to their next class, Lavender and Neville accompanying them, a group of Slytherins led by Blaise Zambini stopped in front of them. Though there were a few smirks on their faces as they looked at Hermione, there was uneasiness amongst them.

Blaise didn't waste time with small talk. "Granger, is it true?"

Beside Harry, Hermione snapped, "Is what true?"

Blaise curled his lip at her. 

"That the Snake of Slytherin gave you a bracelet, something that should only go to Slytherins."

There were mutters of agreement from the other Slytherins.

"Yes," Hermione replied curtly, pushing back her sleeve so that the bracelet was revealed.

There was a disbelieving look on the face of Blaise. 

"That piece of cheap looking junk? I don't believe it. What's it going to do, bite me?"

There were some sniggers from his friends that changed to gasps when Hermione suddenly disappeared, to reappear behind the Slytherins a moment later.

"Not bad for ‘cheap looking junk', don't you think?" Hermione said coolly.

Blaise gaped at her then sought to regain his composure while a Slytherin muttered that this wouldn't have come about if Toilet Boy hadn't pushed her down the stairs, which made Harry's ears perk up. Toilet Boy?

"Well, don't think we're going to bow and scrape to you, Granger," the Slytherin snarled. "You better hope for your own good that Professor Snape gets rid of your attitude."

With a final, resentful glare at her, Blaise and the other Slytherins walked away muttering amongst themselves.

Lavender spoke up. "Hermione, what did he mean with that 'bow and scrape?' line?" she said in puzzlement.

Harry saw Hermione hesitate for a moment. 

"Apparently the bracelets have only ever been given to a few people and as a result they probably would have been given a lot of respect by the others."

"By the other Slytherins," Lavender pointed out.

"Yes," Hermione said curtly, "but that's the last thing I want."

"I wouldn't mind," Neville spoke up with unusual vehemence, having been on the receiving end of quite a few Slytherin practical jokes.

There was a gleam in Harry's eyes. 

"I think they were talking about Draco when they mentioned this Toilet Boy - you did say Professor Snape was going to punish him, didn't you, Hermione?"

"Yes," Hermione said grimly then tilted her head to one side, a wicked smile on her face. "I have a feeling that Draco is the new janitor, which is a big step up in the world for him," she mused. "Pity he wasn't expelled."

Harry shrugged. 

"The professor probably thought it was more humiliating for Draco to be punished this way. If so, maybe we should pay Draco a visit sometime," he said. "Just to make sure he's cleaning the toilets properly," he added piously, and the others laughed.

"Now that's humiliation," Lavender said admiringly, and their spirits lifted, they all went off to the next class.

At lunch time as Harry and Hermione grabbed lunch from the Great Hall to take it outside to eat, Harry idly reasoned that with the current gossip going around about Professor Snape and Hermione, they would probably both decide not to make any waves in public.

Well, that had been his theory, Harry thought as he saw Professor Snape moving towards them in the corridor, black robes rippling about the tall man. There was a faint look of irritation on his face that appeared to have been there all morning, but it eased slightly as he came closer to them. 

He ignored Harry, the look in his dark eyes showing that his attention was totally upon Hermione. Harry had the feeling that the haughty professor seemed slightly edgy, as if it was one thing for him to say that he was going to acknowledge his relationship with Hermione in public and another thing to actually do it.

When Harry thought about it, walking around with girlfriends was not something that Snape did every day and he concealed the glee he was feeling. This was going to be fun to watch.

Hermione ran a hand involuntarily through her long hair, obviously feeling nervous as well, Harry thought.

He and Hermione slowed and stopped walking as the Potions master paused before them, his pale hands restlessly moving by themselves.

"Good day, Miss Granger," Professor Snape said matter-of-factly. He had sufficient control over himself to act as if this was something he did every day.

"Hello, Professor Snape," Hermione said in an equally casual way, though Harry could sense the restless energy between the unlikely pair.

Harry spoke up. 

"Hello, sir," he said calmly. "I hope you're feeling better today."

Professor Snape's dark head swung in Harry's direction, his black eyes narrowed. He immediately assumed that Potter was mocking him, but as he stared at the son of James Potter he came to the wary conclusion that the comment was sincere.

"I will live, Potter," Professor Snape retorted, though the tone of his voice was not as nasty as it had been in the past. Then he turned his attention back to Hermione.

"May I interest you in a walk, Miss Granger?" he said abruptly. "Alone," he added, casting a sideways look at Harry.

"Yes. Thank you," Hermione said casually, though there was a faint smile on her face. 

Harry noticed with interest how the watchful eyes of Professor Snape became a softer black at that, though they narrowed when the Potions master saw the almost-grin on Harry's face.

Hermione turned to Harry with a suddenly apologetic look on her face. 

"You don't mind, do you Harry?" she said.

Harry couldn't resist a dig at them both. 

"No, I don't mind," he said casually. "It's a nice sunny day, good for romantic walks and stuff like that."

"Harry!" a pink-faced Hermione hissed, while Professor Snape scowled down at him. 

Then the professor looked at Hermione. 

"What do you think; shall I take off twenty points for cheek?" he said silkily.

Hermione appeared to consider it for a moment then sighed. 

"No, because then it would be bad for me as well. It was a good idea though," she pointed out.

"Very well. Consider yourself lucky, Potter," Professor Snape said dryly. "Come," he said firmly to Hermione and then the two of them walked off down the corridor. 

Harry grinned and went to find Lavender and Neville. They would love to hear about this.

They were actually walking together in public, Hermione thought, both delighted and apprehensive. She was happy. She felt tense. She was happy to be seen with Severus in public. She wished that people would stop gaping at them both as if they were freaks.

Severus was sorely tempted to tell the next person who stared at them both that they would be joining Draco in toilet-washing duty. He was more irritated on behalf of Hermione, for people had always given him less-than-pleasant looks in his life but he had no wish for those looks to be given to her as well.

"Where are we going?" Hermione ventured quietly at his side.

"You will see," Severus said dryly, hoping that the place he had in mind would not be too crowded. He certainly had no wish to walk along the main corridors for everyone to gape at them.

Following his lead, Hermione turned left at an intersection and soon found herself in a little used courtyard with him. After crossing the sun-warmed paving stones she stepped through a narrow archway, Severus having brusquely indicated for her to go through first.

Hermione blinked and looked around her. She had no idea this particular way into the labyrinthine rose gardens of Hogwarts existed. The air felt cooler here and was heavily sweet with scents from the various roses. A low, peaceful droning sound of bees could be heard as they wandered from flower to flower as well as the tinkling of water from fountains.

The rose gardens was not a place Hermione had spent much time in as her preferred place was usually in the library or in one of the main courtyards with Harry and Ron in her spare time. On the odd occasion they had come in here, the boys had become bored quite quickly, not wanting to be seen anywhere near flowers (unless it was before a dance when finding the right rose to give to a prospective partner was acceptable behaviour).

The gardens showed signs of being cared for lovingly. Not a stone was out of place on the twisting ornamental paths and the soft green grass had been neatly trimmed. The benches were a gleaming white and no mossy growth dared to make an appearance on the various statues scattered around (mostly of self-important looking wizards).

Best of all, there were no people around in this part of the garden.

Feeling relaxed, Hermione turned to smile up at Severus, her brown eyes shining as she felt a lot of the mornings tension leave her. 

"Thank you. I didn't think you liked the rose gardens."

"Silly witch," Severus said dryly as he drew Hermione into his arms, dropping a kiss on the top of her head. He was glad to have some privacy with her and this seemed to be the most suitable place. Just to be on the safe side, he set up a simple warding charm that would deter anyone from wandering into this particular part of the garden. 

"Many of my potions have rose petals as a component. Not the outrageously pink ones of course, but some of the darker roses that only bloom at night."

"I didn't know there were Slytherin roses," Hermione mused. 

Severus sighed and clasping her hand led her over to a nearby bench for them both to sit down. 

"As usual, no respect for your elders, I see."

In a more sober tone he asked her if anyone had been hassling her.

Hermione, who was taking the opportunity to lean against his shoulder, sighed. 

"Let's see. Apart from Harry and some of my other friends, I'm seen as a traitor. Professor McGonagall practically read me the riot act and said my 'liaison' with you would be bad for my career."

Severus growled and said something under his breath that sounded like 'sanctimonious old bat'.

Seeking to soothe his rising temper, Hermione turned her head to kiss his cheek. 

"Look, I'm sure in a short while everyone will think of something new to gossip about. There always is. You haven't been given a hard time, have you?"

Severus gave a short laugh. 

"Apart from random nasty looks and colleagues obviously wondering why you are with someone like myself with my ill-favoured looks, no."

Hermione sat up straight. 

"I don't think your face is 'ill favoured' at all," she said, indignant.

"Your politeness is noted, thank you. Five points to Gryffindor," Severus said ironically.

"I'm not being polite," Hermione said, lifting up a hand to his face and turning it so he was looking at her. 

His black eyes glittered at her. 

"I am no fashion plate, my Hermione, nor am I a particularly nice man at times. One day you may really realise this and..."

He stopped, his face tight.

"And what?" Hermione said softly.

He was silent for a moment then said equally softly, "And leave me."

Blinking, Hermione leaned forward and kissed him tenderly. 

“I love you and your face just the way it is and I'm not leaving you," she whispered, staring at him intently. "Not even if the whole school told me to. Do you want me to leave?"

"How can you ask that?" Severus growled back at her. 

"I want you to be with me always, to share my work and my bed, to argue with me when I am in one of my tempers, to fight over together who gets the best part of the paper in the morning. You drive me crazy. I love you. I..."

"Yes?" Hermione whispered, feeling as though she was on the verge on something both wonderful and fearful.

To her surprise, Severus stood up then kneeled down before her on the soft green grass, his black robes spreading over the grass like dark petals about him.

"I want to marry you, Hermione, my Know-It-All Gryffindor. Will you do me the honour of becoming my wife once you have finished your schooling?" he said in a soft, intense voice, his eyes gazing at her as if she held his life in her hands.

Hermione gaped at him, unable to say anything.

"Say something, please. Even if it is no for this hubris of mine," Severus said faintly, unaccustomed appeal on his sallow face.

Hermione managed to find her voice. 

"Yes!" she gasped and leaning forward to embrace him found herself tumbling down into his arms. He caught her, a look of disbelief and delight on his austere face. 

"Yes," she said again and kissed him, happiness on her face and in her heart.

"You said yes to me," Severus said in bemusement, looking as though someone had whacked him.

"Do you want me to say it again?" Hermione asked.

"Please do," the Potions master said faintly, then a look of irritation appeared on his face. 

"Damn it, I do not have a ring with me. That's what comes from spur-of-the-moment proposals. Though I meant every word of it," he added, kissing her.

"That doesn't matter right now," Hermione assured him, her arms holding him close. 

He was not in a hurry to let her go either; both of them sprawled on the grass in bemused happiness. Though no breeze was present, a handful of white rose petals lightly fell over their heads. Severus cast a suspicious look at the petals as if he felt the universe was making fun of him.

"You know, people will get the wrong impression when they see the grass stains on our clothes," Hermione mused after a while.

"Good," her fiancé said unrepentantly and kissed her again.

TBC


	28. The Ring

Hermione's stomach grumbled, pointing out to her that what was the point of lunchtime if no food was directed its way?

Severus raised an eyebrow, taking the opportunity to regain some of his composure. There was no cause for acting like a lovesick fool, he told himself, even if one was feeling like... well, a lovesick fool at the moment with a warm bundle of Hermione in his arms. She actually wanted to marry him and the thought sent a wild joy through him. There was obviously no hope for him now.

Nevertheless his voice was dry when he spoke to her. "

After last night, the last thing you will be doing is skipping meals, Hermione."

"Yes, professor," Hermione teased him, leaning forward to kiss him. She still couldn't believe that they were now engaged to be married, staring down at her left hand and imagining a glittering ring on her finger. She wasn't offended that Severus did not have a ring with him, for she was still touched by romantic impulsiveness from a wizard who did not seem to have an impulsive bone in his body.

"Since everyone knows about us now, I suppose they wouldn't be any more shocked when they find out we're engaged," Hermione mused.

A little insistent voice that had been at the back of Severus' head trying to get his attention succeeded, and he frowned, trying to deny it. But there was no way around its remorseless logic and so he carefully picked up Hermione's left hand, trying to think of the right way to say this.

"It may be just as well that I do not have a ring with me, Hermione... you know of course that the Ministry of Magic turns a blind eye to teacher- student liaisons now if the student is over eighteen and in her last year?" he reluctantly informed her.

Hermione looked at him in faint surprise. 

"Yes," she said, nodding. Sirius Black was certainly a good example of someone who had taken advantage of that. 

"I don't think that there isn't one wizard school I can think of that hasn't lost at least a few students and teachers thanks to Voldemort. Naturally the Ministry wants as many wizard babies born as soon as possible to replace them - and if the teachers are doing the replacing-" she paused as she found herself blushing, with Severus taking the opportunity to look at her in a way that caused her to blush harder.

She coughed and went on, trying to ignore the way his fingers were sensually stroking her hand. 

"Ah, so the Ministry will look the other way because as a rule, teachers are powerful wizards with the chance of having equally powerful children." 

She couldn't help but remember how intrigued Dumbledore had been at the possibility of children produced by her and Severus.

Severus snorted. 

"Yes - although occasionally idiots with no talent like Lockhart are hired who are more interested in their female fans." 

He gave Hermione a pointed and sardonic look.

Hermione couldn't help but smile to herself at the memory of her flamboyant second-year DADA teacher that she had had a crush on. Looking back she could see she had been too dazzled by his charm (and his stylish appearance) to see what an impostor he had been.

Then she looked up at Severus intently. "What are you trying to say?"

He hesitated. 

"It is only a short time before you finish your schooling, but despite their stance, I fear the Ministry could make it difficult for you if it was revealed that you are engaged to such as myself before the school year is over." 

There was a look on his face though that clearly said he disliked the thought of the Ministry of Magic creating trouble.

Hermione's face fell for a moment, then she recovered. With the kind of looks that had been directed her way today, perhaps it was best that their engagement be kept a secret until she had finished the school year.

"That's all right," she said quietly. "I understand. I don't mind waiting for a ring."

Severus kissed her softly, his breath warm on her face. He had an idea. 

"No one would object to a ring they cannot see on a necklace under your uniform," he murmured, smiling faintly when he saw her face light up. "So you will stay here and eat your sandwiches as well as that appallingly cream-filled doughnut that I know you have wrapped in your bag, if you must. And no, do not look at me like that. Meanwhile I will go and fetch an item from my quarters that no fiancée of mine will be without."

Still holding her hand Severus rose to his feet, pulling her up firmly as well. Ignoring the various pieces of grass at the bottom of his robes, he gave her a final look from his gleaming eyes and then swiftly departed the rose garden the way they had entered.

Smiling to herself, Hermione sat down on the bench and hunted in her bag for her lunch. Severus had no right to mock her for having a doughnut - she had observed him enough times at dinner to know he had a preference for sinfully sweet desserts, she huffed lightly to herself.

As Hermione munched on her food she wondered what her engagement ring would look like. But then, she thought, you didn't have to be a genius to realise that a Slytherin would give a silver ring with a green stone. Then her face grew thoughtful. If he already had a ring then he must have already planned to propose to her (which was possible). 

It was also possible that the ring was one that had belonged to his former fiancée, Clara.

The sideways looks were easier to ignore for Severus as he swept along the corridors back to his quarters. He was mentally berating himself for proposing before Hermione had finished her schooling. In the back of his mind he had had things planned - after her final day there would have been a dinner at a suitably refined restaurant, with a (rehearsed) declaration of his feelings for her when she was in a suitable mood, for he believed in planning and always being two steps ahead of everyone.

But with Hermione around, all reason and planning seemed to fly out of the window at times and after her stubborn declaration of love for him before, warts and all, he had been moved to propose to her. Perhaps part of it was due to realising how much she had meant to him after he had found her unconscious at the foot of his stairs last night.

There was still a sense of unreality about the fact that she had said 'yes' and that he was on his way to bring back the engagement ring he had in his quarters. A ring that had been passed down through various generations in his family... whose previous wearer had been the unlamented Clara.

His face darkened slightly. He had resolved never to think of her again if he could, but some memories could not be easily banished. After the death of Clara in Azkaban, the ring that he had given her (in her mockery she had worn it until the end) had been returned to him with the few other personal effects she had had in prison. 

Everything but the ring he had destroyed and he had been grimly tempted to melt down the ring into a lump of metal. But no, he had kept it on his dresser for a while as a reminder of betrayal. When fury had chilled to bitterness, he had put the ring out of his sight at the back of a drawer.

When Severus reached his quarters and entered his bedroom he crossed over to the dresser and bent down to open the bottom drawer, his searching hand eventually closing around a small box. His pale fingers tightened for a second around the box then relaxed and he put it into a pocket in his robe.

Severus then went to his storeroom and removed from a small, heavily warded box a leather bag filled with lumps of silver he used in alchemy experiments. After frowning over several for their obvious unsuitability, he finally found a piece he felt would do and with his wand Encouraged the silver to reform itself in his hand into a fine silver chain that would not look out of place at a jewellery shop. He then took the chain over to a workbench.

Hermione was finishing off her lunch while studying one of her textbooks when Severus returned to the rose garden. She found herself holding her breath as he approached her and with his dark eyes never leaving her face, Severus sat down slowly besides her. Without speaking, he pulled out a small dark box from a pocket in his voluminous black robes and carefully opened it. 

She gazed down upon a silver ring set into a bed of faded green velvet, with a silver chain that had been threaded through the ring lying in a gleaming pile around it.

"It's... I don't know what to say," Hermione said softly. The ring was a silver band with a twisted Celtic-knot style pattern engraved upon it and small, dark, almost sullen-looking emeralds spaced evenly around the ring which seemed to stare up at her.

There was a sense of great age about the ring, and when she reached out to touch the ring reality seemed to bend in a strange way around her. For a moment she seemed to see all the times that the ring had been presented to brides-to-be from past generations of his family, could sense the emotions of all the women who had worn it before her as they accepted it - gloating triumph, indifferent acceptance, successfully hid fear... and sometimes love.

She could also seem to see the men who had given the ring before Severus - gaunt, black-haired men with darkness in their eyes, fair-haired, coolly handsome men with smiles that never reached their eyes (were there Malfoys in his family tree?).

A cloud passed over the sun and for a bewildered moment Hermione Granger wondered what she was really doing in getting engaged to Professor Snape. A teacher who had snapped at her on her first day of class, who had found countless ways to belittle and mock her and her friends throughout the years, his sallow face gloating with triumph when sometimes the three of them got into trouble no good luck would rescue them from.

Then the sun came from behind the cloud, making the emeralds gleam like that of trees at the secret, sun-lit heart of a forest. No, she wasn't just marrying Professor Snape, Hermione realised, she was marrying a man with his own code of honour whose sometimes harsh ways of teaching had been his way of preparing them for the world which contained wizards like Voldemort, who had a mind that dared hers to match itself against the width and breadth of his. 

Severus could be impatient with her at times, but he had not mocked her inexperience the first time they had made love. He was a wizard who loved her and whom she did indeed love, would one day marry and perhaps bear his children. The sudden image of a harried Severus chasing after a curious, bright-eyed child in his office made her smile and she noticed tension leaving his sallow face, for she saw he had been watching her carefully.

What was she doing, she scolded herself. He was probably a bundle of anxious nerves inside and now he was probably wondering if she really did indeed have second thoughts.

"The ring looks beautiful," she said gently for she saw now it had its own beauty. "I would be honoured to wear it." 

Hermione picked up the chain and opening its clasp, reached up to her neck with her hands and managed to fasten the chain around her neck.

"Here, let me," Severus said softly as he moved to tuck the necklace underneath the collar of her uniform, the ring sliding down to hang between her breasts. He had felt momentary alarm before when he had seen a strange, frozen look on Hermione's face - was she having second thoughts? But whatever it was had passed, for her brown eyes were dancing with happiness and then her hands were reaching up to touch his shoulders and her warm mouth was kissing his.

With the warm sunshine on their faces and the drowsy, contented hum of the bees nearby it didn't matter that they were the most unpopular couple in Hogwarts. Let them stare and whisper behind their backs - they had each other and the world could go hang.

TBC


	29. A Rose and Other Matters

"My parents will be surprised when they eventually find out I'm engaged to a wizard," Hermione said ruefully later on. "They want me to settle down with a Muggle, I think."

"A Muggle?" Severus said in disbelief, raising his eyebrows. Were her parents from some other realm?

"Why on earth would they think you would be suitable with a Muggle?" he said scathingly. Truly, it had been easier to interpret Voldemort's malicious moods than to try and understand how most Muggles thought at times.

Hermione hesitated. 

"I think they would be happy if I eventually married someone normal rather than a wizard. Not that I have any intention of doing so," she added forthrightly.

Her parents had always been proud of her when she had been young, but ever since that fateful day years ago when she had discovered to her delighted shock that she could make her schoolbooks float in the air, they had never looked at her in the same way again.

When a letter had arrived shortly after her first demonstration of magic to inform her that she would be eventually attending a school of magic called Hogwarts (instead of the ordinary, no-nonsense school her parents had carefully picked out for her), their pride had been edged with wariness, as if Hermione had been replaced by a changeling who could blow up the house if she accidentally sneezed.

It had been easy for Hermione to obey the rule that forbade the use of magic when she was at home in the holidays, for it was clear that it would only make her parents more uneasy around her. They were dentists, who believed in things they could see and touch. 

To be fair, they bravely tried to take an interest in what she did... they had always accompanied her to Diagon Alley to buy new school equipment (though they were careful not to touch or look at too many things) and took comfort in the fact that even though their daughter was at this peculiar school, she was one of the brightest students there.

Still, Hermione got the feeling that her parents hoped that she would get magic out of her system and eventually take up on a reliable, ordinary job like others in her hometown would be doing. When she went home, her mother would ask how she was getting on with her Gryffindor friends then inevitably point out the young men in her neighbourhood and the promising careers they were on their way to having.

Hermione had cautiously mentioned though in her recent letters that there was "someone special' in her life. Careful questions had inevitably followed. Was he nice? Was he handsome? Was he pleasant and polite?

She had been somewhat at a loss as to how to describe Severus in a way that wouldn't alarm her parents, eventually giving an edited version. She couldn't very well say at the moment, "well, he's tall, dark and not-quite-handsome. He used to be a follower of the darkest wizard in recent history before he switched sides and became a spy. Hates mornings. Wears black. Not really a people person. Believes in seducing me on a regular basis.”

"Normal?" Severus said, practically spitting the word out. A brilliant witch like Hermione did not come along every day and her parents felt she would be better off with someone "normal'? Did they view her as someone who would have to conform to Muggle society eventually so that she wouldn't disgrace them or something idiotic like that?

"You parents are coming to see you on your last day, I assume?" he said abruptly. 

"Yes," Hermione nodded. While Muggles were barred from entering Hogwarts, the Muggle parents of witches or wizards were allowed to come onto the grounds on the last day at Hogwarts of their children. What these parents wouldn't know is that before leaving Hogwarts their minds would be gently altered by a spell silently cast over them so that they would never be able to accurately describe the location of where they had been. Each persons description of Hogwarts would be different from someone else.

"I will have to redefine their criteria of what constitutes a normal partner for their daughter," he growled softly.

She would have to keep an eye on Severus on that day, Hermione thought ruefully. 

"What would your own parents think about me?" she said carefully. 

His eyes narrowed and there was a faint tension in his shoulders. From what Hermione had gathered from the rare times he spoke about his parents, he felt little love or loyalty towards them. It appeared that they had had more interest in the pursuit of knowledge and status than the well-being of their son when he was growing up, with more disapproval than love given out. 

Severus smiled humourlessly but nevertheless picked up her hand and slowly twined his fingers with her smaller ones so as to take the sting away from his next words. 

"You are a Gryffindor, with Muggle parents. As far as my father would be concerned, you would be on the same social level as a house elf. Although my mother is a Ravenclaw, she would follow my father’s lead in this instance. You would be seen as - how shall I say this - a corrupting influence on me."

Hermione's eyebrows rose in indignation at that. 

"On you? First its people thinking you've corrupted me and now it's my turn to be the corrupting influence? I've never heard such rot. As if I could corrupt you." 

"You always were trouble," Severus said dryly, then he fell silent.

Hermione looked down at their twined fingers. 

"I suppose you wish you had nicer parents at times," she said awkwardly.

"There is no point in wishing for something that has no chance of happening," Severus said with no hint of anger or regret in his voice. 

It was as if, Hermione thought, he had long ago stopped expecting, or wanting a true bond with his parents.

Pushing thoughts of his parents out of his head, Severus changed the subject.

"Have you tested the properties of your bracelet?" he inquired.

"I haven't tested the ability of protection against curses," Hermione said seriously. "However, I have used it to Apparate a few times and it's quite easy... it's almost instinctive for me."

Severus showed approval upon his sallow face. 

"Excellent. Although," and here he gave her a warning look, "this does not mean you can go into my storeroom whenever you feel like it. As you sometimes do," he added significantly.

Hermione put a look of faint surprise on her face. Now was not the time to admit the occasions when she had done so... for serious reasons at the time, of course.

"I can think of other places to Apparate besides your storeroom," she said in a carefully off-hand way.

Diverted to thoughts of a more intimate nature, the eyes of Severus changed to that of a simmering black. 

"How very curious," he murmured as he ran a pale hand lightly over her thigh. "So can I."

The bell then rang to signify lunch was over.

"I will have to go," Hermione said, finding herself resenting the bell as never before. "Next year, I'll be able to hear that bell and know it doesn't apply to me all the time," she said in satisfaction and with a glint in her eyes.

Severus tilted his dark head sideways at her, a smirk on his sallow face. 

"No, because next year you will be at my beck and call as my apprentice - and later my wife - to obey me in every way."

Hermione stood up and put her hands on her hip. 

"Don't get any ideas!" she warned him, though there was a smile lurking on her face. 

Severus merely looked at her in a certain way that indicated he already had quite a few ideas, thank you.

The school year would soon be over indeed, Hermione thought. There was a subject she wanted to raise with him, though how to say it…

"There's a dance for us at the end of the year," she said carefully.

There was a suspicious look on his face. 

"Yes," Severus said warily. Surely she wasn't suggesting what he thought she was?

"I was wondering if you would want to dance with me then. It doesn't have to be a lot of dances," Hermione said in a rush, looking awkward.

"I do not dance," Severus said curtly, his eyebrows drawing together.

"It's not that hard," Hermione said appealingly. 

However, Severus refused to be swayed by his fiancée. "I avoid dancing... I have no wish to be a laughingstock, thank you," he said shortly.

"You would never look like a fool," Hermione said firmly.

"You say that to make me feel better, Hermione, therefore your judgment at the moment is faulty," he said dryly.

"I'm not just saying it to make you feel better!" Hermione said indignantly.

Severus sighed. 

"Do you recall me actually dancing at these events?" he said patiently, crossing his arms in front of him.

Hermione couldn't, though she could remember other faculty members participating in past dances, such as the time a slightly tipsy Professor McGonagall and the Headmaster had decided to have a waltz together - even though they were floating half a metre off the ground while doing so. Harry and Ron hadn't known which way to look, they had been so embarrassed.

"No," Hermione had to admit. "You were probably patrolling the corridors to catch students who sneaked away together for..." 

"…for their own good," Severus cut in smoothly, his eyes glinting. "Teenage hormones can be even more appalling at dances. I will be on patrol this year like every other year," he said brusquely, his manner indicating that the subject was over.

Though Hermione tried not to show it, he saw she looked disappointed. She obviously entertained melodramatic scenes of them both whirling gracefully in time around a dance floor, Severus thought ironically. How could he make her understand that dancing was not a particularly good skill of his? 

In his own teenage years at Hogwarts he had kept to the background at the dances, a sneer on his face as he had watched happy couples dance together, refusing to care that no one wished to dance with him. Or that if a girl did decide to dance with him, it was done as quickly as possible on her part. But here you have a woman who loves you and wouldn't care if you were clumsy, a voice in his head pointed out. He refused to listen, as he most certainly wouldn't want to let her down in public. 

But at the sight of Hermione's downcast face he said gruffly, "I am sure you will enjoy yourself anyway."

Hermione sighed softly then nodded. There was no point in making a fuss after all if he was this determined not to dance with her. She certainly couldn't force Severus to do something when he dug in his heels and refused to do so.

"Yes," she nodded. Then almost as an afterthought she added, "I'll probably be dancing with Harry most of the night... it's a tradition for the Head Boy and Girl to be partners at their final dance."

A muscle at the side of Severus' mouth twitched at the mention of Harry and his eyes narrowed for a moment until they were almost black slits. Although his attitude to Harry had thawed slightly, Hermione could almost see his suddenly seething thoughts at the idea of her and Harry dancing together all night. Being close together. Hermione, being held by Harry. 

Hermione smiled to herself and wisely said nothing.

Suddenly aware that time was passing, Severus made an effort to calm down after the jealous thoughts of Harry dancing with his Hermione and rose smoothly to his feet. Hermione got up as well and both of them walked along the path that would take them out of the rose garden. However, Severus frowned and paused. Something needed to be done. 

"Wait," he said crisply and his narrowed eyes scanned the nearby rose bushes.

No, white wouldn't do for her.

He wouldn't be caught within ten feet of pink flowers.

Ah, that one would do, he supposed.

With Hermione looking on in surprise, Lavender's line about Severus not being the "flowers and chocolate” type echoing in her head, Severus strode over to a rose bush where the roses were of a shade of red so dark as to almost be black and quickly broke off one of the smaller budding roses.

Walking back to her he held the rose out to her. 

"Here," he informed her, watching her carefully for her reaction, hoping she would accept it as a peace offering on his part. 

Although Hermione seemed slightly taken aback at its colour she carefully accepted the dark rose, a look of interest appearing on her face. Though the rose looked more forbidding than its lighter cousins, the scent wafting from it hinted at forbidden delights.

"Thank you," Hermione said softly as she inserted the rose into one of her buttonholes where it almost seemed to blend in with her uniform. "You've already given me enough today. I wish I could give you something in return."

"You have," Severus replied quietly, reaching out to brush away a strand of hair from her face. Then in a dryer tone he said "Come along or I will be forced to take off points from you for lateness," and with that they both left the rose garden.

Severus had the feeling though that he was going to be in a fairly agreeable mood for the rest of the day, which was slightly unnerving. The Potions master assured himself that of course if any student got into trouble this afternoon, then he would be upon them like a ton of bricks. Soft teachers became easy prey.

Hermione wondered how she was going to efficiently concentrate on her work for the rest of the day while being constantly aware of the rose as well as the ring she wore against her skin. She felt like running to the top of the Astronomy Tower and announcing to the world they were engaged. Would the others realise something was different about her? Would Dumbledore or the other faculty be able to sense something? 

A faintly concerned look appeared on her face when she realised that if Remus was in her proximity, then as a werewolf he would certainly be alerted to the presence of silver on her. She would have to cast a shielding spell over the necklace and ring she told herself, for although Severus felt less animosity to Remus than he did to Sirius, Hermione doubted Severus would want to go out of his way to make a special concession to Remus by giving her a different ring and necklace.

When she and Severus were back in the more public corridors and about to go their separate ways, he deliberately bent his head closer to hers even though nearby students were giving them covert looks. 

"Do use that bracelet later, Hermione," he murmured for her ears only before leaving her with a swirl of his black robes.

When Hermione turned and saw the gaped-mouth looks cast her way she merely smiled sweetly and walked on to her next class. She felt it was a good day to be alive, after all. Those who sought to dampen Hermione's obvious good spirits were annoyed when their pointed looks at her appeared to have no affect whatsoever, and they dourly consoled themselves with the thought that Hermione was bound to realise eventually what a slimy git Snape was.

For those who dared to cast looks of disgust at Professor Snape, they were discouraged when he looked back at them as if he found them amusing, in a limited sort of way of course.

When Hermione had a class with her friends, the teacher having had to leave the classroom for a short while, Harry leaned over to Hermione and asked her if she had had a nice walk with (he coughed) her significant other. Then he glanced down at her uniform. 

"Did he give you that rose?" he said in disbelief. 

Ron, who was sitting nearby, grimaced.

"Yes," Hermione found herself mumbling.

"He did?" Neville said in bewilderment.

"Now he's giving you roses?" Lavender said suspiciously. "What's the catch?"

"What do you mean, what's the catch?" Hermione said briskly.

"I'm just saying that if Snape is giving you roses he picked himself, then he wants something," Lavender said darkly.

Hermione shrugged and smiled. 

"He usually does," she murmured.

"I did not hear that," Lavender sighed and gave up.

Hermione didn't mention the engagement ring she had concealed under her uniform. After all, her friends were amazed enough just at the thought of Professor Snape giving Hermione a rose.

TBC


	30. Exams and a Letter

From that time on, the students all concentrated on their studies as the end of the year now quickly approached. The teachers were determined to cram as much knowledge inside their heads as possible before the final exams - certainly Professor Snape was merciless in doing so. It was an effort for Draco to keep up at times due to his new 'duties' in the boy's toilets and was sullen at the status he had lost.

There was no time for Quidditch, which made some of the Gryffindors, especially Harry, noticeably grumpy.

Hermione found it ironic that even though she and Severus were secretly engaged, there was less time these days for them to see each other for often she would be too tired at nights from studying to Apparate to his quarters, her head dancing with memorised incantations. Somehow she doubted Severus would appreciate Hermione instantly falling asleep in his bed as soon as she came to him.

Though Severus understood why the weary-looking Hermione was too busy to see him, his bed felt empty without her presence in it. In his chambers at night he would often find himself listening for Hermione's gentle tap on his door or wondering if she would be Apparating to his side at any moment. If she failed to visit, he would be irritated with himself after for missing her and vexed as well at the fact that he had little time at the moment to find an excuse to actively search her out and…

Needless to say he felt quite frustrated at times.

With little room in Hermione and Severus' lives at the moment to regrettably be other than professor and student to the other, eagle-eyed students who were keen to see overt signs of affection between them - which they would view as disgusting of course - were disappointed to only see the times when he reprimanded her for a mistake.

Many people started taking the view that whatever it was between Hermione and Professor Snape it wouldn't last long - that perhaps it had cooled already.

At last the final exams were upon the seventh-years. All of their hard work of the year and indeed, previous years leading them up to this - the time when you were hunched over a desk, your writing hand threatening to cramp from the amount of writing undertaken. Hastily eaten meals that sat in uneasy stomachs.

When the exams were all over, the students were in a mild state of shock, as if they had been running for a long time and then suddenly halting. Certainly in Hermione's point of view it felt surreal for her to have ceased her studying, most of her time at Hogwarts having been defined by it. 

Unofficially, the school year was now over. 

For the next five days until the results would be known, the seventh-years would be allowed those days to themselves, to do anything they pleased (within reason). Then there would the Final Dance before their Last Day, when parents would arrive to celebrate the achievements of their offspring.

Various teachers, including those who were the Heads of the four houses, closeted themselves in secluded rooms of Hogwarts for the unenviable task of grading the countless exam papers and writing reports. Hermione's (admittedly childish) feelings of neglect by Severus were banished though when one night she found upon her bed through mysterious means a rose that matched the dark hue of the previous one he had given to her. Smiling, she went to fetch a vase to put the rose in.

The seventh-years were allowed to wear normal clothes instead of uniforms and there were looks of envy from the younger students when they strolled with the assurance of adults around in jeans and other casual outfits. The occasional sight of designer clothes on some of the richer students was an odd contrast in the ancient, cathedral-like corridors of Hogwarts.

All of the seventh-years celebrated this freedom in different ways. Many of them headed for Hogsmeade or straight to the Quidditch stadium for impromptu games.

Hermione and her friends went outside one time to sit in the welcome shade of trees. These weren't the trees of the nearby forest, but gentler cousins whose leaves did not whisper ominously to them.

On such a beautiful day it was a relief to be outside and not running to and from classes and being at the mercy of bells, assemblies, teachers and homework. There were only a few clouds in the serene blue sky that were more concerned with looking decorative rather than dumping express deliveries of rain upon people.

Harry put a hand up to his mouth to suppress a belch. Having found out that Hermione's bracelet enabled her to Apparate with another person provided they held hands, it had taken little persuasion on his part for them both to go to the sweet shop at Hogsmeade and return with bags overflowing with them.

"Ooh... my stomach," Neville moaned happily, chocolate smeared around his mouth. They all had that full, slightly guilty feeling that comes of eating far too many sweets.

"Those sweets were bloody brilliant," Ron sighed where he was sprawled on the grass, having decided to have a truce today between him and Hermione since she had brought back a finer selection of sweets than Harry's contribution. 

"You're probably feeling lonely without a textbook, Hermione" Harry teased her, lightly throwing a screwed up chocolate wrapper at her. He decided not to point out that she had fragments of chocolate over the dark red jumper she was wearing over a comfortably faded pair of jeans.

"Don't be silly!" Hermione scolded. "Although," she admitted, "it does feel odd not to be studying."

"Look, can't we forget about books?" Lavender said firmly, licking a garishly coloured lollipop the size of a small dinner plate. "It's a lovely day, we don't have to wear our school uniforms ever again and best of all, there are no teachers looking over our shoulders."

"Hear, hear," Neville mumbled.

"I can't wait to leave this place," Lavender continued.

"You said it," Ron agreed.

Lavender tilted her head curiously at Ron. 

"You're going to the Ministry of Magic for Auror training, aren't you?"

It was difficult in a way for the friends to come to terms with the fact that now that their schooling had ended, some of them would choose paths that would take them away from the others. Lavender, Neville and many other Gryffindors would be going away to various places to specialise in their chosen fields.

"Yes," Ron said, then grimaced. "It means though that I'll have Percy telling me five times a day how important his job is there. But at least you'll be coming along as well, Harry."

Harry was silent for a moment then shook his head. 

“No Ron, I'm not. Dumbledore approached me recently and offered to make me his apprentice - to help him out as an assistant also."

The others sat up and stared at him with wide eyes.

"You're staying?" Hermione exclaimed.

"No way!" Ron breathed, his eyes wide and a feeling of hurt inside him. He had been looking forward to his best friend training to be an Auror alongside him.

Neville looked confused. 

"I didn't think Dumbledore had apprentices."

Harry coughed. 

"He said he got the idea from a colleague of his," he said, looking meaningfully at Hermione.

The others turned to look at her, and Hermione's face went slightly pink.

"Don't say..." Lavender began.

Hermione coughed. 

"I'm staying on as well - as Professor Snape's apprentice," she said softly.

Lavender hesitated and then said slowly, 

"But Hermione, with your school record you could go anywhere you wanted - with your brains you're probably top of the school with your exam marks anyway. I know you've got something going on with Snape, but you received letters from places I've never even heard of. Are you sure you're doing the right thing?"

Hermione was silent for a moment. It was true she had had offers from many prestigious places, who were only too eager to educate the Gryffindor who had played a part in Voldemort's downfall.

When Hermione thought about it, she realised that if she had never given a cake to Severus last Christmas and kept her wistful feelings for him secret, then in all likelihood she would have heeded her head and left Hogwarts soon for further education in potions. In time she would probably have met someone else - while Severus retreated further each year into his bitter shell.

"I've always been interested in potion making and this way I'll get the practical experience... who knows what it will lead to?" she said evenly.

"You just want to be near to your precious Snape, that's all!" Ron sneered, all thoughts of a truce with her disappearing. Although his dating of bouncy Hufflepuff Penny Springfield had restored some confidence in himself, it was galling for Ron to know that Hermione considered him a poor second to the slimy, malevolent Potions master. It would be, Ron realised and admitted privately to himself, probably a good idea to put some distance between him and the Gryffindor he thought he had known.

Hermione bit back the retort on her lips and looked away. She had no wish to get into a shouting match with Ron on a day like today, but she wished he would stop baiting her.

There was an uncomfortable silence then Harry looked at Hermione with a small smile. 

"It looks like we'll both be staying on at Hogwarts then," he said with a look of quiet happiness in his eyes.

No doubt Severus would develop new facial tics when he found out Harry was staying on, but Hermione knew that Harry had become deeply attached to Hogwarts at his time here. Indeed, it seemed he had had even more enjoyment in Potions classes than the cheerless existence with the Dursley's that he had told her about. Perhaps Harry could not be truly happy anywhere else but here...

Lavender looked at them both and sought to lighten the atmosphere, waving a finger at them both. 

"You do know that as Head Boy and Girl you will have to dance together at the Final Dance?"

Hermione and Harry both looked sheepish, then Harry looked at Hermione. "Unless you'll be dancing with...," he hinted. 

Hermione shook her head ruefully. 

"He hates dancing," she said simply. "So no, I won't mind dancing with you."

"So, Hermione, what will you be wearing?" Lavender asked with interest.

Hermione blinked. "I haven't really thought about it," she confessed. "I suppose I'll find something."

Lavender sighed. "Get your priorities straight," she said briskly before launching into the various ways that spells could be used to ensure you had the perfect dress.

In the boys opinion, the conversation rapidly degenerated from there.

* * * * * * 

A few days later at breakfast in the fluttering chaos that was the delivery of mail by owls, Hermione was surprised when an unfamiliar, dark looking owl dropped a letter for her, her name written ornately with silver ink on the envelope. Aware of the curious eyes of her friends, Hermione opened the envelope and took out the letter whose quality paper looked very expensive.

Warily she noticed the Slytherin logo present on the letter as a watermark. What was this about, she wondered as she started reading the copperplate writing. It was a brief note requesting her presence today at 11.15 am in the Medusa Room at Hogwarts where the authenticity of her bracelet would be discussed with three members of the Serpent Council.

Hermione blinked. Serpent Council? This didn't sound promising. There were various meeting rooms at Hogwarts and the Medusa Room was one she knew was allocated to Slytherins, no doubt with a colour scheme of green and filled with heavy, dark furniture, Hermione thought.

The letter was signed by a Alicia Blackthorne, and at the bottom was written "c.c Professor Severus Snape', indicating that a copy of this letter would be sent to him for his attention. 

Hermione glanced up at the Head Table and the empty chair of Severus. He had swept in briefly before with a coffee cup in his hand, only to impatiently grab half a loaf of bread and then leave - though he had turned his dark head in her direction for a moment as if he could not leave until he had looked once upon his fiancée. No doubt the owl would ensure a copy of the letter would arrive in Severus' hands - owls had ways of finding the recipients of letters.

Hermione wished she could interrupt Severus now and ask his advice, but it would be unthinkable at this time.

"What's the letter about?" Harry asked her after he had finished a mouthful of toast. His jet black hair was even untidier these days since he had no more classes to go to.

Hermione smiled at him, though it did not reach her eyes. 

"It seems that my bracelet has come to the attention of a group of Slytherins called the Serpent Council. They want to have a meeting with me before lunch to see if it is genuine, apparently. I'm not really looking forward to it," she admitted.

Harry looked troubled. 

"I wouldn't be either. What if they decide to test the bracelets ability to withstand any curse?" As always, Harry said the word 'curse' as if it brought a bitter taste to his mouth.

Hermione felt a slight chill run down her spine but refused to be cowered. 

"They wouldn't. Not the Unforgiveable kind, anyway," she said adamantly.

Harry paused. "Probably not," he allowed. "But just be on your guard anyway."

"You don't have to tell me that," Hermione said dryly, looking down at the shining bracelet that these days seemed to have always been there on her arm. Sometimes it seemed to be more trouble than it was worth.

Harry smiled encouragingly at her. 

"Well, afterwards you can come and join the rest of us in a game of Quidditch - that will cheer you up."

Hermione considered her uneasy relationship with her broomstick that just barely at times stopped her from a long fall to the ground. But Harry meant well.

"All right," she said. "But don't you ever get tired of Quidditch?" she said whimsically. "I think you've played it non-stop since the exams ended."

Harry looked at her with bemusement. 

"Sometimes you're really strange, Hermione."

TBC


	31. The Serpent Council

There were quite a few meeting rooms at Hogwarts and the Medusa Room was one favoured by Slytherins. No doubt it was panelled in dark green and contained heavy, dark furniture, Hermione thought as she stared at herself critically in her bedroom mirror.

Hermione's school uniforms had been taken away yesterday for cleaning and mending by house elves. However, they had obviously thought it was only right and proper that they take her black robes away for cleaning as well. With only her Muggle clothes left to her, in the end Hermione had decided to wear a pair of pressed black jeans with her scarlet jumper. Her Head Girl badge was neatly pinned to her jumper and her hair was plaited. Her wand was at the side of her jeans thrust through a small loop of cord she had put there.

The main thing was that she looked presentable. Inside she balked at the thought of her, the Gryffindor Head Girl making a special effort in choosing what to wear for this Serpent Council meeting. There was apprehension inside her as well. How many people would be present at this meeting? What would they say... and do? Although Severus would have been sent a copy of the letter as well, Hermione wondered if he would be able to spare the time to attend. After all, the grading of exams was not a task lightly dropped by the Head of a House.

High above the weathered turrets of Hogwarts a dark-feathered owl rested in a niche, a letter clasped carefully in one claw. Like every other owl it was vigilant in its duty to deliver letters, but it had been made clear to the owl in this instance that sometimes a short delay was necessary.

At precisely 11.15, Hermione knocked briskly upon the double doors of the Medusa Room which had been carved from oak. The name of the room was painted in dark, gothic-style writing on a plaque above the closed doors. A low murmur of voices that could be heard from inside paused and there was the sound of a faint laugh, quickly cut off. Hermione heard the quick tap, tap of heels and then one of the doors was opened to reveal a smiling woman with wheat-coloured hair - and somewhat shallow blue eyes - who greeted the Gryffindor.

"I am Alicia Blackthorne - you must be Miss Granger. Well, of course you are and we have heard so much about you," the lady said in a chatty tone. "Do come in ... thank you for being so prompt!"

Alicia was dressed in dark green robes that were cut to show off her lush figure and reminded Hermione somewhat of phoney-sounding people on television ads, the kind who talked down to you while endorsing their latest product. 

"Thank you," Hermione nevertheless said politely and walked in. 

The room wasn't quite what she expected in a castle environment such as Hogwarts. The floor was polished dark wood that had the suggestion of a deep green tint when you looked at it from the corner of your eye. The walls that were painted a silvery-grey shade and the round, highly polished wooden meeting table in the centre served to give Hermione the impression of an impersonal meeting room in the Muggle world... one where many ruthless business dealings that could affect countless livelihoods were carried out. 

There were two men sitting on the far side of the table. One of them was a young man in black robes with a pointed, fox-like face with an unruly mop of auburn hair. His smile revealed shining teeth and his bright green gaze briefly wandered over Hermione in a way that made her want to do more than just tell him off. 

"Welcome Hermione... I can call you Hermione, can’t I?" he said lightly, going on without giving her a chance to reply. "It must be a privilege to be known throughout wizard society for your deeds, and somehow you have managed to attract the, ah, attention of Professor Snape, I hear. Do sit down."

Hermione grimly counted to five then pulled out a wooden chair and sat, Alicia doing so as well in a nearby chair. She was already hoping that this meeting would be over soon. She glanced at the other man in the room who so far had not said a word but radiated faint censure, as if it was beneath him to be here. 

He was a man who would be tall when he stood, with long grey hair and cold brown eyes in sunken sockets who seemed oddly familiar to her somehow, though she had never seen him before. His thin mouth looked as if it frowned more than it smiled and he was dressed in grey robes that gave the impression of being the efforts of a personal tailor. Hermione certainly wasn't amused with the way he was looking at her either, as if he had just smelt something nasty.

Without preamble Hermione said to them all, "Why do you wish to discuss the authenticity of my bracelet?"

The man who Hermione privately deemed Auburn Hair (since he apparently showed no interest in introducing himself or indeed, his colleague) smiled thinly. 

"I will be asking the questions, thank you. It is true that Professor Snape has filed a report on the bracelet but we deemed a visual examination necessary. Besides, certain points may have been, shall we say, exaggerated."

"Such as whether it can actually perform the abilities it is said to have," Alicia said kindly. "Never mind, we will carry out a test to set our minds at rest and then you may go back to your friends."

Feeling insulted, Hermione looked with narrowed eyes at Alicia, who returned the look with innocence. So, they did intend to see if she could withstand various curses, no doubt under the convenient explanation of testing, Hermione thought grimly. Well, not if she had anything to say about it.

Auburn Hair tilted his head enquiringly. "Would you be so good as to show us the bracelet, Hermione?"

Hermione rolled up the sleeve of her jumper and held up her arm to display the bracelet so that they could all see it. The three Slytherins stared at the bracelet, apparently unaware of the fact that they had leaned forward slightly in their chairs.

"It matches archival descriptions of previous bracelets," the man whom Hermione had decided to call Grey Hair spoke up in a dour, deep voice. 

Alicia leaned forward to Hermione confidentially. 

"I would love to have a closer look... would you please take it off for me, my dear?"

Hermione shook her head. 

"It won't come off as there is no fastening catch... I even tried a spell once to remove it but it failed," she said evenly. 

The attempt had given her a raging headache as well; clearly the bracelet actively resisted efforts to remove it from its wearer.

Alicia looked affronted as if Hermione had insulted her. 

"I was only asking."

Auburn Hair abruptly stood up and came around to Hermione. She eyed him warily as he approached and without asking he seized her arm and examined the bracelet minutely. 

"It does appear to be genuine," he commented with a flash of resentment in his eyes. "Imagine, a Gryffindor being given such a gift," he said almost to himself.

"Let go this instant!" Hermione snapped, her other hand reaching instinctively for her wand. 

"You heard Miss Granger, I believe. Let her arm go," said a cold (and welcome to Hermione's ears) voice from the doorway.

The time in which the end-of-year exam papers were graded was the part that Severus despised the most, the deed taking place in a room that by tradition was deep in the interior of Hogwarts and had no windows. Despite a spell that kept air circulating and fresh there was a musty feel to the old room. 

Breaks were far and few between and for some reason ink-stained fingers had been hard to avoid by someone as fastidious as him. A supply of potions was on hand in the room to prevent weariness, but at this time of year they inevitably left him feeling short-tempered as though the whole year had caught up with him at once. He had wanted nothing more right now than the peace of his quarters with Hermione.

Even in this secluded part of Hogwarts, the occasional bright sound of a student's laughter in nearby corridors had reached the teachers ears, making Professor McGonagall and Professor Sprout smile benevolently. But to Severus the sound was akin to that of fingernails being drawn down a blackboard. Indeed, the pervasive aura of Hogwarts at the moment was that of the collective delight of countless students knowing that the school year was over and in the case of the seventh-years, the glee in that they weren't coming back. Well, good riddance, Severus had thought in irritation.

He couldn't help wondering though how Hermione was celebrating the end of her schooling, whether she was feeling happy or sad. Had she smiled when she saw the rose that he had enabled to be placed on her bed?

Then there had been a faint sound from within the room’s unlit chimney and Severus and the other teachers had looked up from their desks with automatically wary expressions. The sound had become more distinct and resolved itself to the ear as that of an envelope making a soft clattering sound as it tumbled down the long chimney. 

A letter for one of them... who?

Professor Sprout was no doubt expecting mail for she quickly hauled herself to her feet and made her way quickly across the stone floor to the fireplace where the envelope was lying. It was covered with a light film of coal dust from its downward journey and Professor Sprout briskly shook the envelope a few times when she picked it up. 

However, when she peered at the writing upon it she then said in an off-hand tone, "Not for me then. Oh, well. It's for you, Severus."

"What?" Severus said sharply, holding out his hand. "Then give it to me, please."

"Don't panic," Professor Sprout sniffed, raising her eyebrows as she came over to his table with the letter in her capable hands that, no matter how much she scrubbed, had ingrained dirt under the fingernails.

Severus bent the kind of look at her that if it had been cast at a student, then said student would have decided that it was a good idea to be elsewhere, quickly.

Severus swiftly opened the envelope that had his name upon it but frowned when he read the letter inside. It was a copy of a letter that had been sent to Hermione requesting she attend a meeting with the Serpent Council at 11.15 am today. At the moment it was nearly 11.30. 

Sending the letter by owl after the meeting had started was no accident but a carefully calculated insult.

The Serpent Council had been set up after the fall of Voldemort, the council on the surface an effort to forge a "new beginning' amongst the remaining Slytherins after many of them who had been on Voldemort's side were killed, imprisoned or fled. Of course, it was really a way for the Slytherins to keep a close, suspicious eye on enemies and especially those who professed to be friends. 

The fact that there were Slytherins in the Council today who had originally avoided being drawn into Voldemort's service, was that years ago these particular Slytherins had been more interested in self-preservation and had sneaked away overseas. Places like say, Australia.

Severus only attended meetings when it was necessary... though it was amusing in a way to see uneasiness in the eyes of the others of being in the presence of a (ex) Death Eater. 

It was not so amusing to see the dour disapproval in the eyes of his father at these meetings, the elder Snape having always been keen to take advantage of new avenues of power. He had also practically washed his hands of Severus since the time he had decided to become a teacher at Hogwarts. After all, Snapes did not become teachers to mix with people who were their inferiors, certainly they did not live in environments that included Hufflepuffs. No Slytherin should waste his time teaching Gryffindors as well as Slytherins.

Oh yes, Severus could recite chapter and verse of the ways he had disappointed his father, he thought grimly, with visits to his childhood home only done when necessary and out of duty.

There was no clear leadership within the Serpent Council but there were various factions, and it appeared that one of those factions had dared to come here and question Hermione, a fact which infuriated the Potions master. He had already written a full report laying out in factual terms the conditions in which the bracelet given by the Snake of Slytherin had appeared, plus a description of the abilities granted Hermione. 

But then, it was probably inevitable that further investigation would be deemed necessary, for this was the first recorded instance of a Gryffindor being granted such a boon.

However, it was inexcusable of them to delay in informing him, the Head of Slytherin of their intentions of meeting with Hermione until now.

He had stuffed the letter into a pocket of his black robes and cast a critical eye over his desk with its stacks of paper. He had nearly completed the grading... indeed, he only had a few more hours of work before he would be finished, thank Merlin. He stood up, gritting his teeth as his back, stiff from hours of sitting down promptly protested.

"It seems I am required elsewhere at a meeting for a while," he said to the others shortly.

Professor McGonagall radiated disapproval. 

"You cannot abandon your duty here unless it is of the utmost importance, Severus."

"I believe I am qualified to judge what is important and I will not be long," he said smoothly, his eyes glinting. 

Professor McGonagall forbore from answering but there was an audible sniff from her as Severus swept out of the room.

The scene that greeted him when he arrived at the Medusa Room turned his obsidian eyes colder than the night sky in the dead of winter, as he took in with a glance the occupants of the room. Hermione was fighting to release her arm from the grip of Tom Wolfleigh, an arrogant upstart who happened to be an associate of Severus' father on the Serpent Council. 

Who also happened to be in this room, at Hogwarts.

"You heard Miss Granger, I believe. Let her arm go," Severus said coldly.

Tom quickly let Hermione's arm go as if it was a hot brand, then made an effort to cover up his moment of weakness by forcing a smile onto his face.

"How welcome to have you here, Professor Snape. You misjudge the situation though; I was merely examining the bracelet that the very symbol of Slytherin gifted her."

Feeling as though she wanted to wash her arm, Hermione got up and moved towards the doorway, not wanting to be a part of this meeting any more than she had to. Gazing at Severus she saw that clearly this was not one of his good days. He looked weary and irritable, there were shadows under his dark eyes and his hair was noticeably greasy looking. His gaze lingered upon her for a moment then shifted to Auburn Hair.

"Does your concept of examining involve manhandling a Head Girl as if she was so much meat, Wolfleigh?" Severus said silkily.

"You misinterpret the situation," the auburn-haired Slytherin blustered. "But then, you're probably biased because of her."

Severus studied him silently as if he was an insect in a jar about to be put in a potion. 

"Am I?" he whispered.

Wolfleigh tried to outstare Severus but then his gaze dropped uncomfortably and he slunk back to his chair. 

"No harm was meant, really," he muttered.

But Severus hadn't finished with him. 

“If the owl who sent me delayed word of this meeting was mine, I would have him stuffed and mounted on a mantlepiece. I am sure that Miss Granger has better things to do than remain here in this room, so as of now the meeting is over," he said curtly.

"Hear, hear," Hermione muttered quietly so only Severus could hear her.

Grey Hair spoke up, his dark eyes glinting. 

"I am the one who called this meeting so only I have the authority to end it, Severus. It disappoints me that you have not spared a word of greeting for your father."

Hermione blinked and felt a faint chill run down her back. Father? No wonder he had looked familiar, somehow. She had not been keen of the idea of meeting her future father-in-law, Damien Snape, but it appeared that it had been taken out of her hands now. As she saw the son and the father look at each other coldly, she could almost feel the waves of dislike radiating from Severus, dislike that obviously had had many years to grow and solidify.

Wolfleigh coughed and got up. 

"Actually, I've just remembered I have a lunchtime appointment I have to go to, so, er, I'll be off."

Alicia tittered nervously and got up also. 

"What a coincidence... I have an appointment I need to go to as well.

Damien's mouth thinned at the cowardice of his companions, but made an impatient movement with an elegant hand to indicate that they could leave.

Severus stepped aside from the doorway without a word and Alicia and Wolfleigh made a hasty exit without looking at Hermione, who was thinking it was a good idea if she just stayed near the wall.

"Greetings, father," Severus said with soft iciness, not bothering to sit down. "Of course, it was your idea to call this meeting."

"Yes," Damien snapped, his pale hand tapping the table restlessly. "When word reached me that you had taken a Muggle-born Gryffindor for a mistress - didn't I tell you that being a teacher at this place was a waste of time - I had to come and see for myself what new shame you have added to the family name."

Severus narrowed his eyes until they were slits but he refused to be baited. He was not his fathers' servant, to do as he was bid. 

"Now that you have come, you can leave the way you came," Severus said coolly, brushing a strand of hair away from his face. "I am sure I do not need to show you the door."

Damien went on as if he had not heard. 

"The fact that she has been granted a gift by the Snake of Slytherin itself makes her barely tolerable to my eyes, but she is nothing to look at and clearly does not know her place."

Hermione opened her mouth to make an angry reply, but Severus held up a hand to stop her. 

"Don't waste your voice, Hermione," he said softly, though his eyes were furious at the insults his father was heaping upon her. 

"All right. It would be a waste of time I think," Hermione replied dryly.

Damien looked with displeasure at the interaction between his son and the upstart bit of skirt who had been the bane of many a Slytherin. 

"You're becoming soft, Severus. Weak as well in showing kindness to a Gryffindor," he commented. "It's high time you settled down with a proper Slytherin woman and gave your parents grandchildren. Forget this teaching nonsense and get this Mudblood out of your system."

At that Severus glided over to the table and put his hands down on it, leaning forward slightly.

"If," he hissed, "you ever talk to me like that again or insult Hermione any further you will regret it. As it is, I will never set foot in your house again. I will never let you within a foot of any children we may happen to have one day and if you try, you will regret that too."

For the first time Severus' father appeared to lose some of his composure. 

"You… you cannot think to actually marry this, this…" he gasped.

"Her name is Hermione, father. And yes, I do plan to marry her," Severus said with a smile of malice on his face. "She seems to have grown on me. Now, get out."

Damien's face seemed to swell with rage and he got up abruptly, slamming the chair back into its place with viciousness that made Hermione jump slightly.

"So. As of this moment you are no longer my son. You can go to hell and call yourself a Gryffindor for all I care!" he snapped.

Severus face twitched but then he smiled coldly. 

"Perhaps I do need to show you the door after all; it is that way", he said, pointing.

Damien hissed at him and then strode out the room, not before giving Hermione a final, contemptuous look.

TBC


	32. Time to Recover, Time to Eat

Severus had suspected that one day this event would come to pass, but he found there was mixed emotions inside of him. There was a sense of being free but also a sensation of something ripped from him.

Family was very important to wizards... especially those who could trace their lineage practically back to the founders, like the Snapes.

But growing up as a child he had never felt particularly loved or wanted. His mother, Selena, a clever, black-haired woman with flashing black eyes and an olive skin, had been visibly irritated by the plain, sallow and sickly only child she had bore.

Most wizards could maintain various spells to keep their homes warm, but Damien had been a strong, robust man who had sneered at the concept of indoor heating in his home... why, pampering people only made them spoilt. So it had been that Damien had disdained to make more than a token effort to see that his son recovered from yet another cough.

Indeed, the strongest memories Severus had of his childhood were of being cold. Although he had quickly learnt the spells to maintain body temperature, as he had grown up he had automatically chosen layered, close-fitting clothes to wear that buttoned up to his neck to ward off chills.

When he was young, Severus had desperately wanted to please his parents, who to his eyes then had seemed to be splendidly dark, shining stars. But when every effort was met with disdain and indifference, his bewilderment (why don't they love me?) had turned to pain (they don't love me?) and then to a growing bitterness as he became older (I do not care). 

In respons his parents had had the gall to turn around and call him an ungrateful brat.

He was aware Hermione approaching him carefully in those odd Muggle clothes of hers and he turned around to see her searching his face anxiously. 

"He had no right to do that to you, to disown you," she said with quiet intensity. There was also a look of guilt on her face, as if she felt responsible for the rift. But Severus knew about guilt, how it could consume you from within.

"Even now my father probably believes that I will go after him to make amends," he said shortly. "Do not blame yourself... you did nothing wrong."

To Hermione that illustrated how little it seemed that Damien truly knew his son... to Severus, saying "sorry' was almost a foreign concept. He said and did what he pleased, and it wasn't his problem if you were offended. 

Despite what Severus had said though to her, Hermione could not help feeling somewhat guilty. She had been given good reason to expect that she would not be welcomed with open arms by her future in-laws, but she hadn't thought that his father would rather disown him than to see him married to a Gryffindor.

Severus did not seem to really care about what had just happened, but his eyes looked flat and the familiar shuttered look was appearing on his face that she knew he wore to hide feelings he did not feel comfortable with expressing, even to her.

She couldn't think of what else to say, for words really seemed inadequate at the moment, and saying that she felt sorry for him seemed trite and ineffectual.

To ward off the bleak, black mood he could feel settling over him like a shadow, Severus focussed on Hermione.

"Did Wolfleigh hurt your arm, Hermione?" he asked abruptly, unconsciously crossing his arms across his chest.

Slightly startled at the change of subject, Hermione shook her head. 

"A bit, but it's nothing serious," she said matter-of-factly. Certainly, Wolfleigh's fingers had felt like pincers on her arm and she had the feeling that a bruise would appear later on, but it wasn't worth making a fuss over.

"Let me see, please," Severus commanded, making Hermione feel as if she was still in Potions and was suspected of doing something questionable.

But when he approached her and took hold of her arm, his touch was gentle as he tugged the jumper up her arm, looking down and frowning slightly at the faint marks on her pale skin.

"You should rub a healing salve upon it, just in case," Severus observed.

Hermione looked up at his black eyes. 

"Look, don't worry about it," she said patiently. "I'm more concerned about you."

His mouth tightened and he looked away. 

"I will be fine. I had always suspected a day like this would come," he said shortly.

Looking sad, Hermione put her free arm comfortingly around his waist, moving close to him. 

"Would your father change your mind? Surely your mother-"

"No, and no," Severus said curtly, but he let go of her arm so he could then hold her close. "I cannot see my mother doing much hand-wringing on my behalf, except when she entertains and deplores to her friends how I have fallen." 

It was unnerving how much he felt the need right now to hold Hermione and also the need to be held by her. Was his father right in that he had become soft and weak because of Hermione, breaking the unwritten rule of his family by turning his attentions toward a Gryffindor?

Then Hermione looked up at him with compassion in those brown eyes of hers. 

"I'm so sorry; I wish there was something I could do for you," she said sadly and he realised that it was not a weakness to care for someone if they cared equally for you. That's what people did in real families... they loved each other and helped when the others went through a crisis, even in families like the annoying Weasleys. 

"Well, you need to eat," Hermione then said firmly, privately wondering how much food and rest he had been getting in the last few days.

"I only have a short amount of time to spare before I have return to my work… I would rather spend that time with someone who doesn't give me a headache." 

Hermione thought for a moment. 

"What if I Apparate us both to one of the secluded courtyards I found recently? It's one that hardly anyone uses so we wouldn't have any interruptions, and I'll conjure up some food," she said in her take-charge tone of voice.

Severus raised an eyebrow and stroked a hand lightly up her back. 

"It cannot be that secluded if a nosy Gryffindor came across it, and I do not want any junk food that you students consume by the shovel load," he observed, but he was willing to allow Hermione the chance to coax him back into a more tolerable mood.

Hermione smiled and focussed upon her bracelet and the image in her mind. Time and space smoothly bent around the couple and then they were both standing in a quiet little courtyard. The walls were covered with ivy gone wild and the cracked fountain in the centre had long since gone dry. However, the wooden bench on the paving stones still looked sturdy enough to sit upon and though the towers of Hogwarts rose majestically around them, only a few diamond-paned windows looked down upon this place.

Severus approved of the swift and nausea-free way the bracelet Apparated people, truly that was because of something Slytherin-made.

He stepped back from Hermione slightly so he could appraise Hermione's appearance. 

"What happened to your normal robes?" he observed with a raised eyebrow, taking the opportunity to actually look at what she was wearing. He disapproved of most Muggle fashions, viewing them as too loud and outrageous with colour combinations that hurt ones eyes. Certainly seeing women in trousers apart from those used for Quidditch seemed somewhat indecent.

Damien had probably had a fit when he saw Hermione dressed the way she was, he thought snidely. But those odd black trousers she was wearing actually served to make her more desirable in his eyes and even though her jumper was in a Gryffindor colour, it did look lovely on her. 

"House elves," Hermione said wryly, noting with some relief that Severus must be feeling better if he was eyeing her as if he wanted to have his way with her. She was aware of how much she had missed seeing him lately. "They decided that most of my clothes needed seeing to and took them away. All I had to wear was my ordinary clothes."

"How... careless of them," Severus murmured, drawing closer to her, his eyes gleaming.

"I think food is more important right now. Everything else can wait until later,” she said firmly.

She walked over to the bench, ignoring his grumble that there definitely would be a "later”. She sat down and taking up her wand conjured up two salad rolls for them both.

Severus swept over to the bench and sat down beside her, looking somewhat askance at the food she offered him.

Hermione had to smile though after he opened the roll to inspect its contents. 

"What are those white stringy things? They do not look natural," he said warily, his nostrils flaring slightly.

"That's alfalfa sprouts," she informed him. 

"Hmph. Some peculiar Muggle food, no doubt. At least there's some meat," he commented, noting the slices of ham inside as well as lettuce and slices of tomato. It wasn't his usual fare but he had seen worse. 

While Hermione enjoyed the food here at Hogwarts, sometimes it could be well, a bit too rich. Certainly her parents advocated a healthy lifestyle and believed salad rolls for lunch helped.

There was nothing said for the next while, just the unlikely pair sitting next to each other and eating, using the small bench as an excuse to sit as close to the other as possible. Severus had to admit the little courtyard had its own charm and a peace about it that was stealing into his heart. The food was edible, too.

When they had finished eating Severus looked at her. 

"You must be pleased you are no longer a student," he observed sardonically. "What mischief have you and your friends been up to?"

"Nothing worth worrying about, thank you!" Hermione replied spiritedly, her eyes flashing. Then she looked pensive. "Certainly I'm happy to finished my schooling knowing that I made every effort to do well, but it's sad to know that part of my life is over. I hope my final marks are good," she said.

Severus snorted at that last comment. 

"If you aren't amongst the top 2% of the school, I would be very surprised."

"Thank you," Hermione said, colouring slightly. Then there was a twinkle in her eyes. "You won't be able to take marks off me anymore, you know."

"Do not remind me," Severus said sourly, though his mouth was slightly curved upwards. "It is annoying enough to know this will apply to Potter as well."

Hermione hesitated. 

"Have you heard the news about Harry, that he has been offered an apprenticeship by Dumbledore?"

At that, Severus looked like he had just sucked a lemon, but then composed his face. He had to remember that Hermione and Potter were virtually inseparable from the other at times.

"Yes, Dumbledore informed us at a recent staff meeting of his decision," he commented. The other teachers had been delighted at the news that Potter would be staying on at the school. There had been a superior smirk on Minerva's face as she had looked at Severus to see his reaction and a distinct smirk from the transformed Sirius in his direction as well. Though Sirius would be trapped in his Animagus form for a while yet, he was still entitled to attend staff meetings (teaching was beyond his capabilities, though).

Severus at first been taken aback, then in a black mood at the thought of Potter always being around, then concerned as the deeper implications of this had sunk in. It appeared on the surface that Dumbledore had merely copied Severus in taking on an apprentice, but it was possible that the Headmaster had done so because perhaps there would not be many years left to him. Wizards lived a long time... certainly it would be a few decades yet before Severus found a grey hair and once Hermione progressed beyond her teenage years her ageing process would start slowing down.

The implication that Potter could one day be Headmaster was somewhat alarming, for all that his resentment of the boy had faded recently.

"I cannot say that the news fills me with much joy," he went on. But at Hermione's resigned expression he added, "though it seems he has become someone easier to tolerate."

Knowing that she could not expect any more from Severus on the subject of Harry - indeed, it was amazing he had said that last comment at all - Hermione had to be content with that.

Severus noted with some annoyance how much the sun had moved in the sky since they had both come here to eat. Like it or not, he had to go and finish his marking.

"I must return to my work," Severus said with some reluctance, standing and brushing the crumbs off his black robes. Hermione stood as well. 

"Though this is the last day, thankfully."

Hermione was glad to hear that, not because it meant that she would be finding out her marks tomorrow with the others, but because it looked like Severus needed some overdue rest. 

"Well, take care," Hermione told him.

"Fusspot," Severus said dryly. "I demand that I have a kiss before I leave, however."

Hermione lifted her face gladly as his mouth descended upon hers and his arms went around her, his black robes enfolding them both as they pressed closely to the contours and curves of the other. She put his arms around his waist, holding him close to her so that she could feel his heart beating.

Then he gently but firmly pushed her away for him. 

"Enough for now, I think," he said in a slightly uneven voice. 

Then in a quieter tone he said, "Hermione, I would appreciate it if you did not spread the news about my father. No doubt it will be known in due time, but until then…"

"All right," Hermione nodded. Even someone not as proud as Severus would not want it immediately spread around that his family had disowned him.

"Shall I Apparate us both back inside?" she offered.

Severus shook his head, having gauged where he was in the labyrinthine area of Hogwarts by noting the particular towers that surrounded them.

"No. I will not have to walk far, it seems. Thank you for the food, I found it acceptable... good day, Hermione."

"Goodbye," Hermione said softly, watching as he turned and swept out of the courtyard, silently wishing him well. Despite his aversion to the outdoors, she liked to think being outside had helped him.

Her attention was drawn by the distant figures of Quidditch players in the sky. Oh yes, she had promised to be in this afternoon's game with Harry, she thought ruefully and Apparated away from the courtyard.

TBC


	33. Preparation

Once the Quidditch game was over and Hermione had convinced the world to stop whirling around her, Harry asked her how the meeting with the Serpent Council had gone, and who they were.

Well Harry, it was organised by the father of Severus, who could have written the book on cold-blooded nastiness, she thought.

"It was all right," she said in a deliberately off-hand tone. "They were a group of Slytherins that Professor Snape had sent a report of my bracelet to."

They alternated between treating me like a child and trying to intimidate me.

"They just wanted to check that my bracelet was genuine."

Her thoughts grew bitter. 

Do you want to see the bruise on my arm after one of them decided to do his "checking'?

"I don't think that they will be coming back for a second opinion, though."

Severus came and put the fear of Snape into them. After Severus' father called me a mudblood, Severus was this close to challenging him to a duel. His father disowned him because of me.

Harry sensed that she wasn't quite telling him everything, but let it lie. He had the feeling that this Serpent Council had thought Hermione would be an easy mark, and had been shown the rough end of the stick instead.

Do you think I am someone worth disowning for, Harry? Do I want to think that?

* * * * * *

The next morning when the seventh-years had dressed and come down to the common room, there were a pile of scrolls waiting on a table with their names on them, all of them tied with official-looking ribbons.

"It's our results!" Ron exclaimed with a mixture of excitement and trepidation that they all felt. There was an undignified rush to the table.

"Here's yours, Harry... I bet you passed!"

"Please say I've passed!"

"I can't find mine... where is it? Maybe I failed!"

"I'm sure you haven't, Neville... here it is."

"Thanks, Hermione!"

Hermione managed to find her scroll and standing aside from the others untied the ribbon and then opened the scroll with slightly trembling hands. Stick the sheaf of reports from the teachers aside. Find the paper, the defining paper with the final marks upon it… there.

It was a Pass With Honours.

Hermione let out a shaky sigh of relief. High marks indeed. She looked up and saw Ron watching her with narrowed eyes.

"Let me guess, you passed," he said snidely. Hermione counted to five.

"Yes. Yes, I did," she said calmly, trying to will Ron to remember they had once been friends. "And you?"

Ron grunted. 

"I did all right," he said shortly, turning to Harry, but the way his shoulders were set indicated to Hermione that perhaps he hadn't done as well as he had anticipated.

There was a sound of a sniffle from Neville.

"Neville... what's wrong?" Hermione exclaimed as she and the others crowded around him in consternation. Her heart sank; clearly Neville had failed and he had tried so hard too. She had often assisted him in his work when he faltered, that is, when she had been able to do so without detection.

"It's not that bad, is it, Neville?" Harry said tentatively, a concerned look in his green eyes.

Neville lifted his face and there was a smile.

"I passed!" he said proudly. "I just managed to pass... Gran will be so pleased," Neville added in relief.

There was a collective lifting of tension. 

"You had us worried there for a minute," Harry grumbled, but it was in a good-natured way and he lightly punched Neville on the shoulder.

At breakfast the Great Hall was full of the buzz of excited students discussing their results and dull conversation from those who had failed, or had done poorly.

Draco had a sullen look on his face, with Crabbe and Goyle sitting in lumpish gloom at either side. There would be no school prizes awarded to them.

All the teachers were up at the head table and Hermione noticed that Severus had regained his intimidating poise. As if he sensed that she was watching him, Severus briefly looked in her direction. The delight of having passed her exams still coursed through her and Hermione involuntarily beamed at him.

His face twitched and then he lifted his coffee cup to her slightly in a sardonic salute, his eyes glinting as if he had read her mind and was saying, of course you passed, my silly witch.

"I saw the way you two looked at each other," Hermione heard Lavender mutter from beside her.

"So?" Hermione retorted quietly.

"Well, just warn me when you do something like that, all right?"

The remarks had been made lightly, but Hermione heard the unease behind her friend's voice. Hermione wondered how Lavender would react when she found out about the engagement, which would certainly be brought out in the open before tomorrow was over. It was just a matter of both her and Severus finding the right moment.

When Hermione looked up at the head table again she saw that Professor McGonagall was holding forth, making brisk gestures and pointing at various parts of the hall. It looked as if she was discussing various ways to decorate the hall for tonight's Final Dance, Hermione thought, interested as to what theme they would have. 

There were looks of barely-concealed consternation on the faces of some of the other teachers, as if they were trying to quickly think of excuses to be elsewhere today. Severus had a malevolent look on his face that indicated that if anyone tried to make him hang decorations in the hall, then they would have another thought coming.

"This afternoon Hermione, I'll be doing a makeover on you!"

"What?" Hermione said, startled as her attention was brought back to Lavender.

"Well, you'll need to look your best for tonight and something has to be done about your hair."

"What's wrong with my hair?" Hermione said, affronted.

"Well, it's a bit too bushy, and there are a few too many split ends that will have to go," Lavender said matter-of-factly, though there was an avid gleam in her eyes that would not have looked out of place on Voldemort as he hatched a new plot.

Parvati who had been listening, nodded with a cheerful look of anticipation on her face. 

"You'll love it," she carolled.

Feeling unexpectedly helpless to resist, Hermione nevertheless looked warningly at Lavender. 

"I'm not having beads in my hair again, and that's final!"

Lavender sniffed. "You're no fun."

Because tomorrow was the day that the seventh-years left Hogwarts forever, they were determined to spend the time left to them in ways that mattered and left the hall as soon as possible once breakfast was over. Even though Hermione and Harry were staying at Hogwarts, they too were caught up with the rest, with Hermione sending a quick apologetic look in Severus' direction. It appeared that today they would not have much time to be together, to her regret. It seemed that by the sour looks Severus was now giving Professor McGonagall he had been roped into helping with the decorations for the dance after all.

This was obviously Minerva's revenge for absenting himself from the exam grading yesterday, Severus thought with displeasure as he contemplated the role he would have - the indignity of it! - of helping to decorate the hall for the dance. He was behind in his various potions experiments and had tartly said so, but Minerva had been determined to counter his every argument. 

When Dumbledore had jovially pointed out that he was sure that Severus would enjoy the exercise of his talents after days of marking exams, it was difficult to back down without serious offence given. Unfortunately he could not plead tiredness for he had had a full nights sleep for a change and the shadows had faded from under his eyes.

Despite the odd disconnected feeling he had inside of him because of his disownment, he was coldly determined not to give in to his father. He had received a letter this morning from his father who had had the audacity to state that if he had not received confirmation within a week from Severus that he had cast aside "his mudblood', then legal papers would be drawn up denying Severus any of the family estate upon the eventual deaths of his parents. There had been an added postscript from his mother deploring the ‘shame' he was bringing upon the family name.

The pay that was awarded a professor at Hogwarts was barely enough to live on comfortably, and finances would not be easy with a wife to bring into the equation, but Severus was grim in his resolve not to give in or ever ask for a single galleon from his parents. He and Hermione would at least have a roof over their heads, and even if they would not have an extravagant lifestyle, he was determined to ensure that she would not live as one destitute.

He had been anticipating the chance to spend some time with Hermione today, but now it seemed that this would be denied him if Minerva had anything to say about it. 

From the apologetic look Hermione had given him before she had left the hall with her friends it appeared that she would be hard pressed to find the opportunity to spend time with him today anyway, which only made it more frustrating for him. He had been sorely tempted to find a reason to draw her away from her friends so that yes, he could carry her off to bed. But he could wait. He would be patient. After tomorrow there would only be a few people left in the castle - and then she would be his, for always.

Armed with cameras, the Gryffindor seventh-years set out to cover as much of Hogwarts as they could from the bottom to the top. The seventh-years from the other houses had obviously the same idea, and though there was tension when the Slytherins ran into other groups, there was nevertheless a grudging truce sweetened by the thoughts on both sides that with luck they would rarely run into the others again after tomorrow.

Despite smiles and teasing amongst the Gryffindors, they were all aware throughout the day of an era that was coming to an end, and that they would always remember the good times as well as the bad. They paused to reminisce at the scenes of past battles and glories, remembered fellow students who had fallen in times past.

On a reckless dare from Ron they waited until no one was in the Great Hall for a little while and then they rushed in to pose at the head table for group photos, having set a camera to automatically take pictures they would all get copies of later. Other students came past and decided to have a go as well, with much excitement, laughter and the flashes of camera bulbs going on until Filch poked his head into the hall and bellowed at them to get out so that the hall could be prepared later for the dance tonight.

Much was made of the fact that Harry would be Dumbledore's apprentice, the subjects he would learn and the status he would gain. Harry as always was embarrassed by the attention and tried to downplay it as much as he could.

"So, where are these new quarters of yours, Harry?" Seamus asked with interest, and Harry smiled.

"Come on, I'll show you," Harry said, and they all trooped off after him. Near the spiral staircase that led up to Dumbledore's office was an ornate wooden door that already had Harry's name written with neat gold writing upon the door (which they all promptly oohed and aahed over).

The living room beyond the door was of a generous size with plain but well-polished furniture and doors that led to a bedroom, a tiny kitchen and a bathroom. Harry's friends wandered around and exclaimed merrily over this and that, admiring the impressive view from the windows.

"Hermione, has your precious Snape got a room set up for you too?" Ron said abruptly.

Hermione flushed, and there was an uncomfortable silence all around.

"Cut it out, Ron," Harry said in a low voice. "Look, we've only got another day together. Let's not fight, all right?"

Hermione knew that like the other teachers Severus had a spare room nearby for potential apprentices to use, but in obvious disdain he had turned it into a spare storage room ages ago. As much as she scorned Divination, Hermione knew what the likely reaction from Severus would be if she preferred to use that room instead of his own quarters. The thought of sharing his living space made her tremble inside with anticipation and excitement, but she did not show this on her face.

Lavender coughed. 

"Look at the time," she said brightly. "You guys don't have to worry, but we girls have to get ready for the dance. Come on, Hermione."

Feeling almost relieved for an excuse to leave, Hermione followed Lavender and Parvati out of the room. Lavender was still talking.

"Remember, you want to look good for Harry tonight," Lavender said cheerfully as they headed towards their tower. "After all, he'll be staying on at Hogwarts like you - and who knows what might happen!"

Hermione felt a chill inside her. It was clear that Lavender was implying that Hermione should set her sights on Harry. She stopped in her tracks.

"Harry's just a friend," she said emphatically.

Lavender coughed delicately. 

"Look, I'm just saying that you could set your sights on someone who would know how to treat you right," she said.

Her eyes kindling, Hermione crossed her arms over her chest and said coolly, "Severus doesn't snap at me all the time, nor does he mistreat me. He seems to enjoy giving me roses... all right, so they're the dark kind, but it's the thought that counts."

There was an instinctive look of ‘eww' on Lavender's face when Hermione had used Professor Snape's first name and Hermione held her hands up in exasperation. 

"Look, just forget it... I'll get ready for the dance by myself," she said with irritation.

There was consternation on Lavender's face, and then appeal. 

"Look, I didn't mean to offend you, it's just that - I don't like the thought of leaving Hogwarts and feeling that Snape's got you in his clutches. I just think that you could do better," she said unhappily.

Hermione wondered how she could make Lavender understand. When you had friends you should feel you could discuss boyfriends with them, the way they made you feel, the little things they did for you, the way you felt when they kissed you. 

"He hasn't got me "in his clutches'," she said wearily. "I've told you before that you read too many romances." 

Lavender was fond of reading historical romances with delicate-looking heroines on the covers swooning in the arms of heroic, not-too-bright-looking men, the plots usually featuring the heroine being rescued from villains with evil designs on their virtue.

"I don't think I could be happy with a life without him," Hermione said simply, with a look on her face that said that she wasn't going to hear any more on the subject.

Though Lavender sighed and gave up, she took a revenge in her own way by making sure that Hermione's face was cleansed within an inch of her life. Hermione's indignant complaint when her face was slathered with a ‘special face mud' as well was met with the directive to "keep quiet or it will crack".

The problem with Lavender was that once she grabbed an idea she ran with it enthusiastically, Hermione thought ruefully when it came to the subject of clothes, patiently but firmly explaining why she wouldn't be going with the Witch Queen look. The students had been advised that they would be allowed more freedom in their choice of outfits for the dance... within limits, of course. However, Lavender was determined to stretch those limits as far as she could.

Appearing as a belly dancer had a surprisingly naughty appeal to Hermione, but looking as if she was about to perform the Dance of the Seven Veils at any moment would not give the right impression to the others, she thought whimsically. But if Severus was definitely attending the dance it would be worth appearing that way just to see the look on his face, she thought impishly.

In the end Hermione had decided to transform a black robe into a burgundy coloured dress that clung gently to her curves with a slit up the side that somehow managed to avoid screaming ‘Gryffindor Slut of Hogwarts'. She wore an overdress too made of fine net of the same colour as her dress that had tiny golden bells sewn to the bottom which chimed gently. 

On a whim she had transformed a pair of her sensible shoes to that of gold coloured high-heeled shoes with thin gold straps that laced up her legs. She had to admit that Lavender had done wonders with her hair... it rippled down her back as if it had a life of its own and there were streaks of copper and gold in it.

On impulse she had taken off the necklace in a moments privacy in her room and after running her fingers gently over the silver engagement ring, she had decided to put the ring on just to see how it looked.

However, it seemed that the ring had had a mind of its own, for once she had slid the ring upon her finger it had refused to budge - as if it had grown impatient in the time it had spent around her neck. What was it with Slytherin jewellery, Hermione thought with exasperation and slight alarm. She could not go out there with the ring before people knew *why* she was wearing it, and so she had quickly placed an Invisibility charm upon it for now.

Hermione was filled with a nervous excitement and even her bracelet seemed to recognise the elevated mood of its mistress for it shimmered with an added radiance tonight. 

Lavender professed herself pleased with Hermione's appearance, saying with rare praise that she looked like ‘the living embodiment of Gryffindor', which made Hermione flush. Lavender and Parvati had decided to wear matching tight silver outfits and they both looked as though they just needed an enchanted disco ball floating above their heads, Hermione thought wryly to herself.

Dinner for them that evening was light food hastily eaten from trays sent up to them by house elves. When at last the girls came down, there were appreciative whistles from the guys - who in a stunning display of non-originality had all decided to wear their dress robes to the dance.

In the common room, Harry approached Hermione, the Gryffindor looking tall and handsome with a smile in his green eyes. 

"You look amazing," he said sincerely and gave her a tiny rose bud to be placed upon her dress with the help of a touch of MagicGlu! that would enable the rose to stay on and be removed easily at a special word. The colour of the rose bud was a delicate, almost insipid pink; a colour that Harry no doubt thought would be appropriate for her. Hermione could not help but compare it in her mind to the rich darkness of the roses Severus had given her... but no, that wasn't fair, she thought. Harry meant well.

"Thanks, Harry," she said kindly and after she had placed the rose carefully near the top of her dress, Hermione took his offered arm and went downstairs with him and the others to the dance. There was a hope inside her that she would see Severus there.

Severus felt justified in his decision to avoid the Final Dance when he found several young couples snogging in secluded corners in the corridors. After pointed comments from him they quickly hurried away and he continued his patrol. Yet time and time again he would find himself start to walk in the direction of the Great Hall, only to recall himself with irritation back to his duty. 

He had decided it was best not to be distracted by thoughts of Hermione, but his treacherous imagination readily supplied images of her in dance finery anyway. Perhaps her hair would be piled in a shining arrangement upon her head, exposing the creamy column of her neck that he knew was smooth to touch, her figure arrayed in something quietly beautiful - or perhaps a provocative dress instead to make the heart beat faster. His blood certainly seemed to run faster in his veins at that thought.

But she would be better off dancing with her friends than with a stiff dancer such as him, Severus told himself coolly. Then his imagination promptly supplied images of his fiancée dancing in Potter's arms and smiling up at him the way she did to Severus. There was no cause to be jealous, he growled to himself, shaking his black head impatiently as he paced along the dark corridors, his black robes flying about him. He could clearly see there was only the affection of a brother and sister between them.

But still, perhaps there would be no harm in a quick observation of the dance from a discreet distance, he reasoned to himself. His real reason for doing so of course would be to see if any other students were sneaking away from the dance for illicit thrills. The Potions master was part of the shadows themselves as he approached the Great Hall. 

The huge bronze-coloured double doors had been thrown open and lights of silvery green and blue spilled out into the corridor, with the sound of waves crashing gently upon a shore to be heard. Why Minerva had decided to go with a sea theme this year he had no idea, Severus thought irritably. Thank the gods that with the aid of magic it hadn't taken that long to decorate the Great Hall for the dance. 

He had suggested some eminently suitable themes instead only to be told by her that the idea was "not to depress the students, Severus!" A hovering globe near the ceiling of the Great Hall cast a soft, dream-like light over everything as well and so Severus felt unobserved as he silently slipped into the hall and stood at the back, resolutely determined not to start looking around for Hermione.

A spell had been cast upon the floor to make it seem as if it was covered in tiny white shells made from mother-of-pearl and the ceiling had the shimmery look of the surface of the lake seen from down in its dark depth ... an idea of his of course that had actually been accepted. The walls glowed a silvery green and blue. The students in the hall (mainly the female ones) looked like an explosion in a paint shop, Severus thought sardonically. Although many of the students and some of the teachers were dancing, some lone students hovered near the walls, trying to look as if they didn't care no one wished to dance with them.

Then Severus saw Hermione and his heart seemed to skip a beat. She looked breathtaking, he thought in amazement. Just noticing how far the slit in her dress went up her legs threatened to make the clothes he wore feel too tightly buttoned up to his neck and the beginnings of hot desire rose within him. Hermione was dancing with Potter of course, who seemed to have made his hair look like something other than a berserk black haystack. They were both light on their feet and she was laughing at something the wretched boy said.

"She's been looking out for you," a quiet voice spoke to Severus from nearby.

"What?" Severus snapped, turning his dark head swiftly to the speaker. 

It was Remus in his usual shabby looking robes, with a mild smile on his face. Remus went on, unperturbed by the glower on his colleagues face. 

"Hermione has been busy dancing with Harry and sometimes Neville, though that lad does need more practice." 

Severus' eyes narrowed at the thought of Neville dancing with Hermione. 

"But she often looks at the doorway as if she's waiting for someone," Remus continued in a casual tone.

"I did not say I was coming to dance with her," Severus said stiffly in the end.

"That does sound like you," Remus said easily, "but since you're here, why not dance with her?"

TBC


	34. Let's Dance

Severus was loath to admit weaknesses of any kind on his part, but after a moment he said tersely, "My list of qualifications does not include ‘dances well', Remus."

He would have to choose his words carefully, Remus sighed to himself. Many people thought that if Severus had been an Animagus, he would have been a snake, but Remus felt at times like this that an animal form for the Head of Slytherin would be something with more bristles and spikes. Truly, it was a minor miracle that Severus had let Hermione past his defences at all.

"Half the people in here aren't great dancers, but that hasn't stopped them tonight," Remus offered casually. "Certainly Minerva needs to loosen up when she and Albus dance - she has also been beaming at Harry and Hermione as if she secretly plans to be a matchmaker for them both."

At that Severus' eyes glinted with a ‘not if I have anything to do with it', look and tilting his chin as if to do battle, headed off in the direction of Hermione.

Harry was impressed with the way that the Great Hall had been transformed into a sea theme for the dance. All of the tables had been removed as well, with just a small table against one wall that held light snacks and a bowl of (non-alcoholic) punch with glass goblets surrounding it. 

Spindly looking wooden chairs against a wall offered rest for weary dancers later. There was the sound of light orchestral music in the hall; fast enough to encourage efforts at dancing but not too formal as to make people feel uncomfortable. The hall was enlivened too by the presence of the ghosts of Hogwarts who drifted quietly between the dancers murmuring pleasantries, Sir Nicholas pausing at times to politely tip his head at students.

He was enjoying dancing with Hermione. Harry had to admit that she looked nice in her own way... if this was a fairy tale, then this would be the part where he and Hermione gazed into each others eyes and started thinking sappy thoughts.

But all he saw when he looked at Hermione was his intelligent, forthright friend who had become the sister he had never had... the warm affection he felt for her was not that of ‘true love'. Harry knew that she felt the same way and was pleased enough to be dancing with him, though it was a bit off-putting for Harry to sense that Hermione would rather be dancing with Snape at the moment.

As if he had been overheard, Harry was suddenly aware of the Potions master swiftly approaching them both who then said in a silky yet cold voice when he reached them, "I believe you have danced with Miss Granger long enough, Potter".

The two Gryffindors paused in their dancing, and for a moment there was a look of surprised delight on Hermione's face before she schooled her expression to that of a calmer one. She was aware of other students having slowed in their dancing to look their way, eyes avid to see whether a major confrontation between Severus and Harry was about to happen.

But Harry disappointed them by saying off-handily, "Since Hermione is probably sick of me stepping on her feet all the time, you're probably right, sir". 

That comment was a lie, but Hermione shot Harry a quick, grateful look of thanks which he returned with an equally quick and amused ‘you owe me' look before relinquishing Hermione and turning away. He felt like a break anyway.

Feeling grateful towards Harry, Hermione looked up at the formidable dark form of Severus. Although she had not truly expected him to turn up at the dance she nevertheless had had the wistful hope that he would do so. To dance with a friend like Harry was enjoyable enough, but it would be a special thing in itself to dance with the one she loved, even though a faint twitch on Severus' sallow face at the moment revealed that he was nervous, perhaps angry with himself also for being nervous. It didn't help that some of the dancing students were covertly gaping at them, though they kept their distance.

Being this close to him Hermione saw approvingly that some of the shadows had disappeared from underneath Severus' eyes and his hair fell silkily around his face instead of being a greasy curtain. She wondered how he was feeling inside overall but sensed it would not be a good idea to bring up the subject of his father, even discreetly. The subject would still be a sore point for him. The look in his dark eyes as his swift glance took in her appearance and the scooped neckline of her dress spoke eloquent volumes, but then his gaze froze when he saw that she was not wearing his silver necklace.

Hermione quickly lifted her left hand and whispered hastily, "Don't worry - it's on my hand and, uh, invisible. I tried it on and it refused to come off!"

His dark eyebrows raised and his relieved heart beating again, Severus swiftly clasped her smaller hand with his and ascertained with relief that yes, although her fingers appeared to be bare of rings, he could feel Hermione was indeed wearing his engagement ring. He knew that there would have been a fairly reasonable explanation from Hermione, but his mind did have a tendency to jump to the worst conclusions first.

"I see," he murmured, his mouth twitching in an almost-smile to reassure the look of barely concealed anxiety in her eyes and then he smoothly kissed the back of her hand before releasing it. There had been odd stories passed down through the Snape family about the properties of this engagement ring, so her story was really not as nonsensical as it sounded.

Then he cleared his throat slightly. 

"May I have this dance?" he said gruffly.

"Yes, thank you," Hermione smiled and moving closer to him placed her left hand on his shoulder and lifted her right arm up to him expectantly. He clasped her other hand with his and placed his other hand upon the small of her back, subtly pulling her closer to him.

Remus smiled approvingly from across the hall and decided he would enjoy a dance as well. So it was that a Ravenclaw standing by the wall who had despaired of dancing with someone or anyone that night was pleasantly surprised to be asked to dance with him.

"This is against my better judgement, you understand," Severus said in a cool tone only for Hermione's ears, his eyes glinting down at her. But with his senses acutely aware of her breathtaking nearness, he was becoming swiftly ensnared by the theory that this dance would not be a total disaster after all. He had had dancing lessons drummed into his sullen head years ago, after all. He found himself listening to the music, realising that yes, now was the right moment to start dancing a simple waltz with her.

Both of them were awkward dancers at first with each other. Feeling their bodies respond with a yearning ache due to the closeness of the other did not help and being aware of ‘you're actually dancing together?' looks cast their way did not make things easier. They could not have been more of a contrast together if they tried - Severus looking the very embodiment of Slytherin as he always did in his sweeping black robes that seemed to swallow up light, with Hermione his polar opposite in every way in her Gryffindor-toned attire.

But when they both saw the sight of Sir Nicholas offering to dance - in his own way of course - with a startled looking Lavender who had paused at the refreshment table for a moment, there was a smirk on the face of Severus while Hermione tried to hide a smile. They both glanced at each other and in their shared humour some of the tension eased between them and without consciously realising it, there was more grace to their dancing. 

It was a somewhat surreal experience for the others in the hall to see them both dancing with quiet delight on Hermione's part and a lack of cold indifference on Professor Snape's part. Awareness was dawning in even the dullest of minds that if they still continued to tolerate each other at this point, then there was a good chance this state of affairs would be continuing for a while.

"I do not wish to know where Miss Brown got the inspiration for her outfit," Severus said dryly in the same low tone as before to Hermione (for he had no wish to be eavesdropped upon by gawking students, thank you).

His heart was threatening to turn butter-soft at the fact she was now resting her head gently against his chest. It was both comforting and sweet torture to be able to do nothing in this situation but hold her in a somewhat chaste manner as they danced; the very scent of her tantalised him.

Hermione thought of trying to explain to Severus and failed miserably. 

"That's probably just as well," she said ruefully in equally low tones.

The music played and the night went on, dancing couples paused for a breather and others took their place. It was observed though that Professor Snape and Hermione did not cease in their unhurried dancing together, two figures of deep red and black, light and shadow.

At one point with an apologetic tone to her voice Hermione said, "I realise I never thanked you for the rose you sent me just before the exams."

"I see; so I have had to wait to be thanked until now," Severus commented with a glint in his eyes. "The next time I decide to give you something I may change my mind - and did Potter give you the rose which you are wearing now?" he added softly, glancing down at the pink rose she was wearing.

Trust Potter to give her a rose that particularly insipid colour of pink.

"Yes. After all, he was the one who took me to the dance," Hermione countered lightly.

His mouth twisted slightly. "Touché."

"There's nothing wrong with your dancing, though," Hermione added generously, for although he was not as good as Harry (not that she would mention this to Severus) and slightly stiff as he danced, it was at the end of the day nothing to be ashamed of. 

Although it was unfortunate that the sinuous grace in his walking could not be successfully transferred to the dance floor none of them were perfect. Many of the other dancing students were situated near the soaring stained glass windows at the other end of the hall, and by unspoken agreement Severus and Hermione were dancing at a circumspect pace nearer to the bronze doors.

"Mmph," Severus said, sounding as if he could not care less, but was secretly pleased.

"I have not properly congratulated you on your exam results - did I not say you would pass? Nevertheless, I am proud of you," he murmured.

Hermione felt her cheeks turn pink; outright praise from Severus was infrequent enough that it went straight to her head like wine. 

"Thank you," she mumbled and for a moment lost her step in the dance but managed to correct herself.

"Perhaps a break would be in order?" Severus suggested dryly. "I think we have scandalised enough people for now", he added in an ironic tone.

Hermione agreed; her energy for dancing had seemed without limits, but when they both stopped in their dancing she was aware she was slightly out of breath, and sitting down seemed a good idea. Of course, Severus only looked as if he just been for a brief walk.

No one happened to be near the refreshment table when they both approached it or sitting down on the chairs, and Hermione was relieved to see that there was still some punch left. Severus took a glass goblet, frowned in irritation when he saw he had picked up a slightly chipped one, replaced it with one of unchipped quality and when he had filled it with drink offered it to Hermione.

"Thanks," she said gratefully and sank down upon a nearby chair with a sigh, leaning back against the stone wall. Severus sat down beside her on her left side with a brimming glass too in his hand, his dark robes pooling upon the floor and tangling to a small degree with the sweeping edges of her outfit.

The chair that he was sitting upon then creaked slightly under his weight, but luckily did not cause any further alarm. There was a sour look on Severus' face.

"I told Minerva before that we needed sturdier chairs but would she listen? Of course not," he growled to Hermione.

Hermione's eyes twinkled at him. "Ah, you helped with the decorations here," she said, nodding.

"I said no such thing!" Severus said in denial then after looking at her said stiffly, "I assisted. But I did not volunteer, thank you."

Hermione smiled to herself. 

"Was the floor your idea?" she said in interest, looking down. The tiny, gleaming white shells looked realistic, apart from the fact that they did not crunch underneath ones feet.

He snorted at that. 

"Of course not." 

But after a second he indicated the faintly eerie appearance of the ceiling with the discreet pointing of a hand. 

"But that was my doing," Severus admitted.

"It's very Slytherin-like," Hermione murmured.

"There will be less sarcasm from you, please."

Smiling, Hermione surveyed the dance floor, noticing that Harry was dancing with Lavender, while a slightly stunned looking Neville was dancing with Parvati. The impression she was receiving from the other dancers now was ‘let's pretend Those Two aren't over there'. At this point she felt she didn't really care. 

She realised there was a pleasure at having completely shredded her reputation now as studious, brainy Hermione, the one to come to only when there was a knotty spell formula to work out. Reliable, sidekick Hermione. It had been almost taken for granted that she would be there to help in that last, bloody battle against the Dark Lord.

No, a Hermione who could love the Potions master and be shown affection by him was a more unpredictable creature.

Once they had finished their drinks, Severus casually sent the goblets floating back to the table and reached for her left hand. There seemed to be layers of meaning in that gesture and she looked down at their clasped hands.

"Hermione," he murmured and she turned to look at Severus, the black hair that constantly got in the way over his face, the sallow skin, the lines on his face that somehow gave him character, the black eyebrows that could lift in ironic query, the deep-socketed black eyes that could convey a thousand things in one swift glance. His eyes were now focussed upon her... she was so close that she could almost see herself reflected in his eyes that had once looked to her and the others like cold, empty tunnels.

He continued. 

"The ring of mine that you are wearing is hidden, but would you consider wearing it in truth?"

Hermione nodded, a glow in her eyes. It was time to stop hiding, she thought and whether Severus had silently cast the charm to revoke an Invisibility spell or whether the contrary ring itself had played a part, in the next moment the silver ring was visible upon her left hand with the emeralds gleaming in what appeared to be smug satisfaction. A sense of joy rose up inside of her with a new sense of unity between them.

As Professor McGonagall had just sensed that something momentous had happened, she sailed over in their direction, a gently smiling Albus following. Harry, who was dancing with Lavender, gazed after them, his gaze sharp. It had been a surreal experience to see Professor Snape and Hermione dancing together and he had been curious as to what they occasionally had been murmuring to each other about. Certainly Lavender had been unashamedly gaping at them both.

There was a tight smile on Minerva's face as she approached Severus and Hermione. She noted a dangerous glint in Severus' eyes as she came closer that said she was to watch what she said. When she stopped in front of them, Minerva said, "I see that you have been enjoying yourselves."

Immediately on her guard, Hermione decided to keep her answer simple. 

"Yes we have, thank you."

Albus paused beside Minerva and smiled benignly at Hermione and Severus, a twinkle appearing in his eyes after being quick to notice what was now on Hermione's left hand. 

"It seems an announcement is in order, don't you think?"

Minerva gasped softly when she saw that Hermione was wearing an engagement ring and put her hand to her mouth.

Hermione froze and then found herself saying, 

"Yes, Headmaster, I'm going to marry Severus."

At that line, Severus turned to Hermione, his dark eyebrows raised. Trust Hermione to jump in first, his impudent Gryffindor.

"What kind of line is that? I was the one who proposed to you, Hermione. On my knees as I recall," he said dryly, ignoring the surprised stares of his two colleagues.

"I got carried away, that's all," Hermione said aside to him in a whisper, feeling buoyed by the unexpected gleam of dark humour in his eyes. "Well, what about ‘we'll both be getting married', then?"

"An improvement, I suppose," he observed.

By now Minerva's eyes were the sizes of poached eggs. 

"Congratulations," she said faintly.

"You will both be getting married? Splendid, splendid," Albus beamed, his voice carrying throughout the hall. Various looks of shock and startlement were turned their way.

"Harry, oh my God, did you hear that?" Lavender whispered wide-eyed to Harry. There was a feeling of shock inside Harry. Hermione was actually going to marry Snape... but he knew what he had to do. 

He quickly said, "Excuse me," to Lavender and headed towards Hermione, Lavender following swiftly on his heels.

Hermione looked up and saw Harry approaching them, a stunned look in his green eyes. Severus had noticed him as well for he turned his head swiftly to observe Harry as he came towards them, stopping just metres away.

"Potter," Severus observed, his eyes narrowing. You could have heard a galleon drop in the hall. What was going to happen, people wondered.

Harry swallowed and then said steadily, 

"Congratulations - to both of you. I hope you will both be happy."

"Thanks Harry," Hermione said with relief in her eyes. 

Severus looked at Harry measuringly for a moment as if judging the sincerity of his words and then said abruptly, "Thank you, Potter."

An out of breath Lavender came up to Hermione - a wide-eyed Neville behind her - and said, "Well, I still want to be your bridesmaid, you know!"

Not in that silver outfit was the immediate thought from the others.

Remus approached in his turn, relieved to feel no adverse reaction from the ring Hermione was wearing. 

"Congratulations to both of you," he said warmly, his wide smile encompassing both Severus and Hermione. Severus was surprised to realise that it meant something to him that Remus' approval was genuine.

"Well, I think this calls for a celebratory drink in my office," Albus beamed. "You're not allowed to refuse, you know.

So it was that Hermione and Severus found themselves ensconced in a room adjoining the Headmasters office that was filled with comfortable, overstuffed couches, a goblet of fine vintage wine in both of their hands as they sat upon a couch. 

Harry, Lavender and Neville had been allowed to come along too, taking the opportunity to be in the Headmasters quarters with its myriad collection of magical artefacts for reasons other than a talking-to. They sat in a couch near Hermione and munched on a bowl of nuts that Albus had provided while Remus stood by the fireplace which had a small, cosy fire in it.

Hermione was uneasy to be a centre of attention in this way as she sat besides Severus. The wine was too dry for her taste but cautious sips helped to calm her down. Both of them found themselves fielding curious questions about dates, outfits and a honeymoon.

Severus was irritated at the nosiness of the questions, but concealed it. He was annoyed as well that the sofa that they had been both urged to sit on was far too soft and sitting on a sofa patterned in a zebra print was beneath his dignity he thought. At least the wine was excellent.

Minerva had stayed for a short while but then had left, pleading tiredness.

Lavender bravely decided that it was her duty to design a decent wedding dress for Hermione.

Neville wondered whether Hermione would like being called "Hermione Snape'.

Harry thought life would certainly be interesting at Hogwarts from now on.

A gleeful Albus was filled with images of powerful Granger-Snape children and launched into a speech about how a new era was dawning with an alliance between the Slytherin and Gryffindor houses.

Remus had visions of dog-Sirius howling at the moon when he heard the news.

Hermione wondered how her parents would react when they found out tomorrow.

Severus thought that if Albus didn't stop droning on then he would be tempted to put a hex on him.

It was a while before the people dispersed to their separate quarters. Lavender assumed Hermione would be coming back to the Gryffindor tower with the others that night but when she saw the ‘no she is not' glint in Professor Snape's eyes, decided not to push her luck or think about what they would get up to. 

Noticing how close Hermione was standing beside him, Lavender thought ruefully Hermione would probably agree with the professor.

So it was that Hermione and Severus found themselves alone down in the corridor by the towering phoenix that was the (now closed) entrance to the Headmaster's office, Remus the last to having said goodbye.

"I believe I have been patient enough, my wife-to-be," Severus murmured as he enfolded her in his dark robes, his words full of meaning.

"My room or yours?" Hermione said mischievously as she put her arms around his waist, mumbling an apology when she hiccupped. 

"Mine, impudent one - or rather, ours," he added softly.

"Yes," she agreed shyly though there was a glint in her eyes and after concentrating on her bracelet the corridor was empty.

Hermione Apparated them both into his darkened bedroom - no, it would really be their bedroom soon - and she squeaked when Severus swept her off her feet and held her close to his chest. A single growled word from him made a candle flame into sudden, golden life that gave the room a cosy appearance but the feelings in them both were far from cosy as he carried her determinedly towards the bed.

"I have been deprived of your presence in my bed for far too long and for that you shall pay," he hissed in anticipation against her ear as he stopped beside the bed, his words making her heart beat faster. "I shall keep you with me until I am certain I have wrung every drop of desire from you."

Hermione gasped at the desire she heard in his deep voice and felt an answering tingle of desire between her legs. A whimper escaped her mouth and Severus laughed softly as he laid her down upon the bed. A quiver ran through Hermione's body and she felt as if he was about to make love to her for the very first time. Her mouth was dry as she saw him remove his shoes and then his outer robes with slow deliberation.

In the soft light of the room the darkness of his hair and attire looked even more dramatic than usual, serving to make him look like a dark angel who had every intention of seducing her. Nevertheless he was still Severus Snape, her husband-to-be and at that thought a great surge of love swept through her and her gaze upon him was warm and loving as she opened her arms invitingly out to him.

Severus was revelling in the power he had over Hermione, feeling that he was maintaining control of the situation even though his desire for her ran hotly in his veins and his hardened body was increasingly impatient at being confined in his trousers. With the words he had uttered he was well on his way towards reducing her to a state of trembling desire. But when he saw his fiance now with her arms held out to him, her glorious mane of hair tumbling around her over the black bedspread - a veritable lioness demanding his touch - his self control promptly cracked. The look of love he saw in her cinnamon eyes destroyed it utterly.

"Hermione, oh Hermione," he groaned and he practically flung himself at her once he climbed hastily upon the bed, only knowing in his desperation that he had to touch her, hold her, have her.

Hermione gasped Severus' name as he joined her on the bed, his mouth desperately seeking hers and his arms clasping her tightly against his black-clad body before he rolled on top of her, his mouth seeking hers and then kissing her frantically. As she hungrily kissed him back, touching and caressing him in return she could feel his hot hardness against her thigh as he pressed her into the mattress and it was only natural for her to part her legs slightly in invitation. 

He groaned and then she could feel him swiftly yanking up her dress until he could position his still black-clothed body even more intimately between her legs. Through her panties she felt his hardness pressing against her warm centre and she squirmed against him, her heightened senses making her feel ready and eager for him.

"Tell me you want this," he said hoarsely, panting against her neck as he tormented himself by pressing and rubbing himself against her warmth, his seeking fingers confirming how damp and ready she was for him.

Her arms wrapped around his neck and pulled him even closer to her.

"I do want this Severus, oh please," she moaned.

He groaned and then said "Divestio!" in a harsh voice. Then their embracing bodies were naked and she squeaked in surprise, then she moaned with pleasure as he sought her heat and then thrust into her.

"Hermione," he growled against her neck as he withdrew and then thrust hard into her again. She felt like a warm velvet glove around him and it was like coming home as he moved fiercely within her, groaning when she wrapped her legs around his waist, her action serving to draw him deeper into her.

"My love, my Hermione," Severus gasped, closing his black eyes in pleasure as he rode her with fierce abandon.

Ah, she had missed him so much, Hermione thought blissfully as she writhed and arched under his body, her skin feeling as if it was on fire where his body touched hers. He felt so perfect inside her and she felt gloriously wanton as she clutched him to her. Then she felt the delicious pressure building up inside her with his every thrust… she was starting to come.

Severus' eyes snapped open and then blazed down at her as he felt her body beginning to convulse in pleasure around him. "Yes, that's it…" he urged her.

Hermione couldn't hold on anymore and then she was crying out his name as she convulsed around him, her universe exploding into fiery pieces.

Severus cried out as he felt her climax, her release like sweet nectar around him and then he lost himself within her, calling out her name as he thrust into her one final, fierce time and spilled himself within her. He collapsed upon her and his weight was welcome to a happily dazed Hermione before Severus recovered and rolled away from her body. 

His arms then drew her close and he uttered charms in a slightly rough voice that cleansed their bodies and then she felt herself to be lying underneath the sheets of the bed with him.

He murmured soft nonsense words against her hair as she snuggled against him, her eyelids drooping in weariness. Severus kissed her forehead gently and with both of them feeling fulfilled and pleasantly tired after their lovemaking, it wasn't long before the lovers both fell asleep in each others arms.

TBC


	35. Final Day

The next morning found Hermione waiting for her parents at the train station on the ‘Muggle side' with the other students as they waited as well for their parents to arrive for their Final Day. Although they were dressed in ordinary Muggle attire they were awarded the occasional suspicious look from the train official who always felt that some of the local school students had something strange about them.

Hermione had stayed the whole night in Severus' bed and there had been the pleasure of waking up cradled in his arms and finding him watching her with dark eyes that were nevertheless pleased she had stayed. However, it was going to be a busy morning for them both and not one for them to stay secluded in his quarters, no matter how tempting the thought was. 

However, Severus had pointed out with a glint in his eyes that they could not be faulted for starting the day off - and saving water as well - by sharing a morning bath. It would be his duty to ensure that she was as clean as possible for a day such as today.

To which Hermione had retorted smartly that she was sure there were parts of him that needed a good scrub! Little time had been wasted in running the bath.

Later, after Apparating back to her quarters and preparing for breakfast, some people had offered Hermione awkward congratulations for her engagement ... it was amazing what the approval of Dumbledore to her engagement could do, she had thought.

While some like Ron gave her the cold shoulder, Lavender would not rest until she had the chance to ooh and ah over her engagement ring up close. Hermione had sensed that while Lavender was not completely reconciled to Hermione being engaged to the ‘greasy git', she was willing to accept the fact now that there was true affection on both sides.

Breakfast was conducted with both excitement and muted emotion. The reality that this was the last day - indeed, the last breakfast for the seventh-years - was setting in with a vengeance. Various wide-eyed looks had been cast Hermione's way from the younger years who had heard that the Gryffindor Head Girl and the Head of Slytherin were engaged. Since the students would be leaving before most of the day was over, the breakfast was a Leaving Feast in itself, with delicious food of the finest quality that would stay in your stomach to nourish you for hours.

Hermione had felt somewhat light headed as if a weight had been lifted off her now that the engagement was out in the open, but one hurdle remained... the reaction of her parents. At her age she did not need their permission, but she wished for their blessing all the same.

The time after breakfast was spent by the students in their various towers, gathering their belongings together to be packed for their journey home later on. There had been a pang of sadness in Hermione's heart as she took pictures off her walls, clothes from her cupboard and picked up books that had nearly overflowed the shelves provided. She had lived in the Gryffindor Tower for seven years, sharing the good times and the bad with her friends and had spent countless hours studying in the common room. In the winter she had enjoyed sitting by the fire, warming herself while gales howled outside.

Once she was finished packing and her suitcase easily reduced to the size of a handbag, she had taken it down to the common room, a mildly curious Crookshanks padding down the stairs after her. A set of her best robes had been shrunk so as to fit in the pocket of her jeans, for it was not considered wise to appear on the Muggle side of the train station in Hogwarts robes.

"No, I don't want my bag taken away like the others," Hermione had patiently explained to the eager and subservient house elf that had appeared to ‘humbly serve the great Head Girl'. The house elf had looked confused for a second before hastily abasing itself before Hermione. It had forgotten that the most worthy Head Girl was staying on at Hogwarts, that she was going to marry the Potions Master Who Must Not Be Offended... it would put its head down a toilet bowl immediately!

"No, don't!" an alarmed Hermione had said hastily, eventually convincing the elf that this was not a good course of action. She had tried her best to help the house elves abandon their masochistic tendencies, but her efforts had not achieved any lasting success. She had left her suitcase at the side of a chair to be fetched later while Crookshanks sat near the fireplace and started grooming. 

Hermione had been filled with a nervous excitement at the thought of moving into Severus’ quarters, for them both to sit in their chairs by the fire and discuss the inner workings of magic, to happily wade through his vast collection of books whenever she felt like it. To wake up beside him in the morning.

There was not a single cloud in the clear blue sky over Hogwarts, thanks to discreet spells that persuaded clouds in the vicinity to travel somewhere else. The leaving ceremony was to be held in the expansive green grounds just outside the school, with a sharp-eyed Minerva overseeing the arranging of chairs and other matters necessary for a no-mistakes ceremony. There would be more chairs this year than usual, with additional people curious to see the famous Harry Potter.

Hagrid had taken Hermione and the other students over the calm lake. The gentle half-giant was unashamedly misty-eyed today as he was every year at the prospect of students leaving Hogwarts forever, and often they would have to block their ears while he loudly blew his nose.

The students had then boarded the Hogwarts train which took them back to Platform 9 ¾; the portal between their world and the noisy chaos of the Muggle world. Once through, the students clustered casually on the platform, each of them lost in their own thoughts. Although they were always careful to travel as discreetly as possible through the barrier, the train official always gave the students (as he was doing now) the occasional suspicious look. 

As well as the occasional odd seeming student, the official knew in his gut that there was something out of the ordinary too with this station. He was a practical, down to earth man and these feelings vexed him... and one day he would surely find out what was going on, oh yes.

"Hermione!"

On hearing her name called she turned and there was a welcoming smile on her face as she saw her parents hurrying towards her, dressed in their best attire, which though of a conservative style was made from good quality cloth. The hugs were slightly stiff though on their part towards their daughter, for they had never completely reconciled themselves to the fact that she had these powers that they couldn't comprehend.

"It's good to see you," Hermione said in a light voice that disguised the pang of hurt inside her.

"It's good to see a daughter who has done so well in her exams, congratulations," her father Richard said briskly after an awkward moment. He had had the choice of several careers in his youth before choosing dentistry... certainly one thing he could say of his daughter was that she had surely inherited his brains.

"Yes, well done," her mother Olivia said quickly after Richard. Receiving news from Hogwarts by an owl still made her nervous after all these years (and what if the neighbours saw?) but news such as the high marks of her daughter had made up for it. Then her lips pursed in slight disapproval. 

"Hermione - your hair, what have you done to it?"

Hermione put a hand up to her hair automatically in defence... she had decided to keep the streaks of gold and bronze that Lavender had added to her hair because she liked the way they made her ordinary brown hair look interesting for a change. Certainly Severus had found more reasons than usual to touch her hair last night.

"I had some streaks added. It's good to change hairstyles occasionally," she said in defence.

There was an uncomfortable silence and then her father coughed to change the subject. 

"I think it's time we should be going through that barrier of yours and getting on the train," he said carefully.

"Yes, it is," Hermione said firmly. "Come on." 

Glancing around to check that they would not be observed, she quickly motioned her parents to follow her through the barrier when there was a window of opportunity for them. On the other side the Hogwarts train - which had been turned around so as to travel back to Hogwarts - belched steam from its smoke stack as people boarded.

Hermione noticed that her mother looked a bit shaken after coming through the barrier, and a manicured hand plucked restlessly at her handbag as if she wished to take something out of it to calm her nerves down. It was one thing to have seen their daughter travel through the barrier in the past, and probably another thing to travel through it yourself for the first time. 

Her father had noticed the reaction of her mother as well, for he paused to whisper awkward words to her that sounded to Hermione's ears like "you'll be all right”, to which her mother nodded and then held up her chin bravely, though she glanced around the platform in case anything untoward was lurking in the corners.

Aware once again of the gulf that lay between her and her parents, Hermione nevertheless kept a pleasant expression on her face as she took her parents on to the train and to an empty compartment in a carriage.

A tea lady came past not long after the train had left the station, and Hermione pulled some galleons out of a purse in her pocket to buy some sandwiches and muffins for her parents to eat... she had had a big breakfast and was not hungry. She sat on the other side of the cabin, unconsciously covering her engagement ring with her right hand. Having appreciated the food, her mother then smiled brightly at Hermione.

"Since this is your last day at Hogwarts you must be feeling sad, but think of it as moving on. I'm sure you and your boyfriend will stay in touch."

Hermione took a deep breath. As far as her parents knew, she was seeing someone "she had met at Hogwarts”. Her slightly vague description had left out the fact that he was a professor, wanting to break that fact to them gently. The last thing she had wanted was her parents raising a hue and cry over that... it had been bad enough when Sirius had accused Severus of evil intent towards her. Perhaps she should have said more to her parents in the end, but now time had run out.

"Mum, Dad - I've decided to stay on at Hogwarts as an apprentice to the Potions master there. He's also the one I've been seeing - and we're engaged."

Her parents stared at her open-mouthed in shock and with a sudden ache in her heart Hermione also saw a flicker of relief in their eyes... as if she was a problem child they didn't have to worry about anymore.

"What do you mean, you're staying there!" her mother nevertheless said sharply, dealing with one thing at a time. "I think it's time you realised that life doesn't revolve around your silly spells and wands and spent time in the real world like us."

Hermione felt angry at that. The real world? Hogwarts and the rest of the wizarding world wasn't a silly fairytale kingdom. It was a place where humans... yes, they were wizards but they were still human... lived and laughed and loved, and also suffered, sacrificed and died. They were part of the ‘real world' and in a way were part of the deeper reality of the world that Muggles chose to ignore, or if they didn't see it, sought to suppress those who did.

"Mum, I've always been in the ‘real world'. I just don't belong in your part of it," she said quietly.

Her mother went on as if she hadn't heard. 

"And what do you mean by getting engaged at your age, to a-a-" she spluttered. "You never said it was this serious!"

Stung, Hermione said, "You got engaged to Dad at a young age yourself!"

"Yes, but he was like me, not a weirdo like-" Olivia began agitatedly then stopped, her face flushing when she realised what she had unheedingly said.

Hermione's face was pale with shock. That then, was her mother's real opinion of her, was it? A weirdo. Her parents just didn't feel uncomfortable towards her; they thought she was a…

"Is that what you think I am ... a weirdo," she whispered.

"I didn't mean it like that," her mother said stiffly, but her eyes did not quite meet those of Hermione's.

Hermione needed to get out of there, right now. 

"I have to go and change for the ceremony," she said tightly, rising from the seat. "I'll be back shortly."

"Hermione!" her mother called after her but by that time Hermione had left the compartment. She hurried down the narrow corridor to the toilet cubicles, fiercely willing herself not to cry. It had been hard in her first years at Hogwarts, scorned by the ‘pure-blood' families as a Mudblood as well as not really feeling a part of her family since her powers had developed. 

She had put on a brave face and had been determined to do as well as she could at Hogwarts, to make herself part of the wizarding world so that no-one would be able to point at her and call her a ‘stupid Muggle born'. The slow alienation from her parents had been harder to cope with, but she had put thick walls around herself to shield herself from the hurt. But now, that word ‘weirdo' had hit her deep inside.

Once she had changed - with her Muggle clothes now shrunk to doll-clothes size and tucked away in a pocket in her robes - she went back to her compartment, looking resolute yet dignified in her black robes, her Head Girl badge pinned to her robes.

Her parents smiled anxiously at her when she returned, with her mother trying to regain ground. Olivia felt uneasy inside at the sight of her daughter in those witchy robes of hers, looking as though she could do anything she wished. She had to make her see some reason.

"Hermione, you're my only daughter and I only want what's best for you. You're a clever girl and we raised you to be sensible... surely you can see that there's more to life than magic. Why rush into something you might regret later," she said coaxingly.

"Mum, magic is what I was born to do... and I would never marry a non-wizard," Hermione said in weary conviction, folding her arms across her chest. "Wizards do marry non-wizards, but some of us can't. I can't." 

Certainly the thought of marrying a Muggle sent a jarring note of discord through her... she would sooner marry Ron rather than marry a man with no magic in his veins at all, a man who had no concept of the wonder felt after the first successful spell ever cast, who wouldn't be able to sense the magic that lay in the land itself.

Her father, who had been silent until now, said awkwardly, "Please listen to your mother Hermione... why not do the right thing and go to a college where you can work towards a proper career."

Hermione shook her head, a resolute look upon her face as she glanced out of the window. They were close to Hogwarts now, and the castle could be seen in the distance. 

"I already have my career," she said quietly.

Severus was automatically watchful in regards to the presence of the Muggle parents at Hogwarts, despite knowing that once they returned home, they would be magically prevented from disclosing the whereabouts of the school. Some of them seemed to behave like first-years in his opinion, gaping at everything they saw as their children showed them around the grounds of Hogwarts once they had been brought over the lake (and looking alarmed at the occasional unearthly sound from the Forbidden Forest).

In the time before the ceremony started, Severus was in the company of various parents who had come to hear from him how their children had really behaved in his class. His lip curled at the sight of reporters from the Daily Prophet who had come to this ceremony to see Famous Harry Potter graduate. The boy hadn't gone to the station to meet his relatives but had stayed to help the other teachers set up the chairs and platform for the ceremony.

There was an unsettled feeling inside Severus at this, for the implication was that his aunt and uncle would not bother coming to see him.

His eyes narrowed though when he saw Hermione from afar in the company of two Muggles who were obviously her parents, a middle-aged couple dressed in conservative suits. Though she sought to hide it, he knew Hermione well enough to see that she was tense and upset. Even if Hermione hadn't told him about her parents aversion towards her abilities, he would have been able to tell this by their attitudes, the way they glanced around as if they thought that perhaps the medieval witch hunts hadn't been such a bad idea after all.

Hermione was uncomfortable at the thought of being the focus of countless eyes and the upset feelings she had inside as a result of her parents didn't help either. But once the ceremony started, she held her chin up when it was her turn to go forward to receive her scarlet-and-gold sash. 

It helped knowing that Severus was in the audience, his eyes gleaming in his otherwise impassive face and a gentle smile of approval from Remus sitting beside him. Hermione was glad to see that although they weren't best friends, things at least seemed to be cordial between them at the moment.

Once she had received her sash, she went to sit back down in her place in the audience where the students had been situated. She was beside a slightly glum looking Harry, who had had several reporters cameras go off practically in his face when he received his sash. Of all the students, Harry was the only one who had not had a family member arrive to see him today and Hermione could not help but feel sorry for him. He muttered a few words and Hermione felt an invisible bubble spring up around them, the kind that would allow them to talk without being heard.

"Why did all those reporters have to come?" he said in a harried voice. "You would think they would have had enough of me by now. "I have the bad feeling there's going to be more photos afterwards too."

"You will just have to make sure you show your best side to the camera for your fan club," Hermione said lightly. 

However, a perceptive Harry looked at her. "What's wrong, Hermione? Something's wrong; I can tell. Is it your parents?" he said quietly.

Hermione shrugged uncomfortably, not wanting to go into too many details.

"I'm glad they came today, but at the same time - I wish they hadn't," she said awkwardly. 

Harry gave her hand a sympathetic squeeze before he dissipated the SilentTalk shield. In some years there were Muggle-borns whose parents had distanced themselves from their wizard offspring, and sometimes there was outright disownment. He certainly was never going back to see the Dursley's again as far as he could help it. When he had written them a letter saying he was staying on at Hogwarts, they had obviously been so relieved they had sent him an envelope with a grubby pound note in it. There hadn't been a letter.

After the ceremony, the reporters not only rushed up to Harry, they wanted pictures of Hermione posing with Harry as well.

"You do?" Hermione said, confused.

"Show your best side to the camera," Harry murmured lightly to her as the reporters declared that since Voldemort was dead in the great battle as a result of her efforts as well, surely a few photos of her too wasn't too much to ask for.

She was aware of Ron looking sullenly in their direction while Mrs Weasley looked at Hermione with daggers in her eyes, clearly incensed that Hermione had dumped Her Boy for the Potions master. The rest of Ron's family had turned up, looking like a red-headed hydra as they clustered around him. 

Hermione wanted a chance to say goodbye for old times sake but finding an opportunity looked to be difficult.

Once Hermione had managed to escape the reporters and find some breathing space her parents came up to her, wariness on their faces.

"Why were you having photos taken - and what was that talk of you being in some ‘great battle' or other?" her father said, frowning. "What kind of education have you had?"

This was all she needed, Hermione thought. Her accounts to her parents of life at Hogwarts had been edited. Heavily edited. She managed a shrug. 

"There was a problem with um, a dark wizard a while back but we managed to defeat him."

"A dark wizard? We?" her mother said in alarm.

"Good day," a voice said and they turned. Never before had Hermione had felt so much relief upon seeing Severus, who swiftly looked down at her before turning to stare at her parents. Surely they could have the decency to let her enjoy this day instead of producing the tension in Hermione that he could practically feel radiating off his fiancée.

He saw that Mrs Granger was a thin woman with frizzy brown hair held up with combs and somewhat shallow blue eyes. Highly-strung, he noted. Mr Granger was a stouter man with thinning black hair and keen brown eyes. The intelligent one, he observed. He noticed that her parents seemed to be older than most present... it seemed that Hermione was a child of their middle age.

"You must be Mr and Mrs Granger," he said smoothly, maintaining a polite distance though he was tempted to loom over them. For Hermione's sake he would be polite to her parents.

Mr Granger coughed. 

"And sir, you are…" he said carefully. 

He saw before him a tall, lean and black-haired man in his late thirties with austere features and piercing black eyes, dressed in floor length black robes like a character from a televised Charles Dickens novel. He felt deep in his bones that this man was someone not to be crossed - surely Hermione was not really engaged to a man this old!

Hermione took a deep breath. 

"Mum, Dad, I would like you to meet Professor Snape - the Potions master at Hogwarts and my fiancée."

"Pleased to meet you," Olivia said faintly to the professor, conscious of her manners although there was something about him that set her nerves on edge. 

But when he gravely inclined his dark head to her and said in a soft, even tone, "The pleasure is mine," she suddenly felt a sense of relaxation pouring through her as if everything was all right. Of course it was, she thought, giving the professor a quick smile.

"How do you do?" Richard said gruffly. He found himself revising his earlier opinion of the professor. Yes, he was really far too old for his daughter, but he looked as if he had his feet firmly on the ground, which would be ideal for Hermione.

"You must be proud of your daughter," Severus observed, smiling slightly without malice.

"Yes," Richard said readily. "We're pleased that she's done so well." 

Olivia nodded quickly in affirmation.

It seemed to Hermione that her parents had accepted the concept of Severus as her fiancée far quicker than expected. Although she hadn't sensed anything, had Severus altered their minds slightly?

Would it matter if he had, a tiny voice whispered in her mind.

Her father coughed.

"I don't believe my daughter should be rushed into anything she's not ready for," he said carefully, leaving Hermione to wonder if the idea of coercion was just a fancy idea on her part.

Severus raised an eyebrow. 

"Nor do I. Rest assured that I only have your daughters best interests at heart. Unfortunately I see that I am required elsewhere at the moment - but I am pleased we have met."

"You should come for dinner at some time," Olivia said earnestly. 

Severus looked slightly taken aback at that but recovered swiftly. "Of course."

He inclined his head to Hermione and then to her parents, then swept away.

There was a prickling on Hermione's neck, and she cautiously turned around. Not too far away from her the headmaster was smiling affably, his eyes twinkling at her.

TBC


	36. Final Day  - part 2

As thoughts tumbled through Hermione's mind, she saw the Headmaster come towards them, looking like a benign grandfather arriving to greet his kin.

"You are Mr and Mrs Granger of course; well met!" Dumbledore said to her parents with a twinkle in his eyes. On this day he was dressed in beautifully formal brocade robes that made everyone else look dowdy in comparison.

"You must be pleased to have a daughter who has been, and will continue to be, an asset to this school," he went on cheerfully.

"Yes, we are," Richard said readily. "It's clear to us that this is where our daughter belongs". 

Olivia nodded quickly in assent.

Was Dumbledore exerting an influence over her parents' minds? She had no sure way of knowing. If he was, it suddenly seemed less repugnant than the thought that her parents really were glad to leave her here so they could get on with their own ‘normal' lives, Hermione thought with pain inside.

"You approve of her engagement, then?" her mother enquired, her eyes keen.

Dumbledore smiled benignly. 

"Of course. I am pleased to see a union come about between two wizards of such stature. Young wizards should not be discouraged from marrying when their hearts draw them together... so rest assured that your daughter is in safe hands", he said with a twinkle in his eyes at Hermione.

Hermione took care to maintain a look of respectful interest on her face.

Hermione felt herself going slightly pink from embarrassment though... why did the Headmaster have to make it sound as if she and Severus were both impetuous teenage lovers?

"Oh well, that's all right then," Olivia prattled, looking nothing but a proud mother.

"I am glad you agree," Dumbledore said heartily. "Wouldn't you say so, Hermione?"

She forced a smile. 

"Of course, Headmaster." 

Dumbledore peered at her over his spectacles as if he was aware of her thoughts - and was amused.

"Excellent," he said and then nodded courteously to her parents. "A pleasure to meet you both but I fear my attention is now requested elsewhere."

"Of course," Olivia said smilingly. "It was good to meet you."

When the Headmaster had departed, Olivia smiled brightly at her daughter. 

"Hermione, my throat feels dry - would you fetch me a glass of water?" Then Olivia paused and said cautiously, "The water here - it is safe, isn't it?"

Hermione pasted a smile upon her face. Did her mother think that the water would turn her into a frog?

"Yes, Mum," she said quietly and turned away in the direction of a marquee set at a discreet distance, under which there was a long table set with all kinds of finger food that replaced itself once you had helped yourself from the various platters. Not surprisingly, Crabbe and Goyle were taking advantage and stuffing themselves with food. There was also a tall pitcher on the table that had had a charm placed upon it so it would produce any drink you could think of (within limits).

Hermione was relieved to have an excuse to leave her parents and she still felt churned up inside as she poured water she had summoned to the pitcher into a handy glass goblet.

There was a rustle of robes and then she saw Severus standing beside her, his dark eyes studying her.

"Your parents do not object to our union, but I wonder at the words they have said to put that look of misery in your eyes," he said softly.

"I'm fine; there's nothing to worry about," Hermione said quickly in a low tone. She felt unwilling right now to mention the things her parents had said and she also did not want Severus to turn his ire towards her parents today.

"Yet it was not ‘nothing' to you, Hermione," he observed sharply.

"Forget about it," Hermione found herself snapping. 

She regretted it immediately when she saw his mouth tighten.

"Very well. I will see you later," Severus said curtly and then he turned and swept away, his posture stiff.

Damn her mouth, Hermione thought wretchedly. She shouldn't have taken out her upset mood on Severus. Unfortunately with all the people milling around it made things difficult for her to run after him in public and say sorry. Biting her lip she took the goblet of water and headed back towards her parents.

"Hermione!" came a cheerful call and Hermione turned to see Lavender and her mother (a small, smiling woman in amber robes), coming towards her.

"I can't believe I got through the ceremony without falling flat upon my face!" Lavender laughed after the initial greetings had been made. "It looks like Harry will be plastered all over the Daily Prophet again. You know, ‘Boy Who Triumphed Finishes Schooling' and that sort of thing."

"Poor Harry," Hermione said with feeling. "I'm just taking this water back to my mother, would you like to come?" she said.

Lavender glanced in the direction of Hermione's parents, a faint look of surprise on her face. 

"That's right, they're Muggles, aren't they? I sometimes forget you're not wizard-born like the rest of us. Yes, I would like to meet them... it's not often you see Muggles close up that often."

Hermione felt momentarily better at the thought her friend could mistake her for a pure blood and right now she welcomed the chatter of Lavender, who cheerfully put her parents at ease with her bright manner. Harry came along at one point and stopped to talk to them as well, every inch the Poster Boy for Gryffindor with his quiet charisma and manners.

At one point he smiled with slight awkwardness at Hermione. "Look, I'll be going back with Ron today to stay at his house for a couple of weeks... Mrs Weasley is determined to "look after me” so I'll, um, see you when I get back."

The unspoken words were that it was doubtful that Hermione would get an invitation to come and visit him while he was staying at Ron's, which made her feel regretful…. she had enjoyed coming to see the Weasley household in the past. Despite the fact that the untidy house only seemed to be held together with a wish and a prayer, it had a cheerful charm that was missing from her parents house. Ron was pointedly avoiding her at the moment anyway.

"That's all right, Harry," she nevertheless said matter-of-factly.

Harry smiled in relief. 

"I'm sure you'll find something to do anyway!" he grinned.

Yes, such as make up with Severus, Hermione thought. It was not always easy to get through to him when he was in one of his foul moods, something he probably was in now because of her, she thought with a wince. 

But all she merely said was, "I will."

Harry smiled and the talk turned to other subjects.

Eventually it was time for the other students to depart Hogwarts, their luggage having been transported to the station. Of course this meant an opportunity for last minute photos in front of Hogwarts, many of the students teary-eyed or pretending that they really had something in their eyes they had to wipe.

As they were being transported across the lake, the resident squid followed the boats, waving tentacles in the air at one point in an almost mournful manner. Hermione's mother gasped even after Hermione explained that the squid meant no harm.

"Don't forget to owl me in the holidays, all right!" Lavender said fiercely to Hermione as she hugged her at the station platform. Neville, Parvati and some of the other seventh-years had come up to Hermione as well to say goodbye, since she wouldn't be travelling back on the train with them.

"I won't," Hermione promised, smiling.

"Don't let Snape push you around either."

"Lavender!" Hermione said half-scolding, giving her a final hug.

There was a faint clearing of a throat and Hermione turned to see Ron standing nearby, a guarded look on his face.

"I guess this is goodbye, then," Ron said stiffly.

"Yes," Hermione said with regret in her voice. 

She remembered how in her early years at Hogwarts the three of them had vowed that nothing would come between them. Life had seemed so simple and certain in those days even amongst the adventures they had been plunged into. They would stay good friends forever. Gryffindors were always the good guys. Snape was a nasty, probably evil, professor. But life hadn't stayed confined to such predictions and Hermione sensed it would probably be a while before she saw Ron again.

"I'm sorry it didn't work out between us, but we did have some good times, didn't we?" Hermione said softly.

After a moment, Ron said shortly, "Yeah, we did." He coughed and then held out a hand. "For old times sake, then."

Knowing that there would be no hug from him, Hermione reached out and shook his hand in return. 

"All the best, Ron." 

She could see there was a refusal on his face to wish the woman who was going to marry the Potions master similar wishes, but then he overcame it and said gruffly, "Yeah, you too," before he turned and walked back to his waiting family, Mrs Weasley having given Hermione narrow-eyed looks all the while.

"See you later, Hermione," Harry said cheerfully, giving her a hug before he went after Ron.

Saying farewell to her parents was awkward for Hermione as she saw them to a door of the train. She sensed that there was ambivalence on her parents part... they weren't completely happy to be leaving Hermione here but also relieved as well that they were doing so.

"Well... goodbye, Hermione," her father said awkwardly. "Don't forget to write and stay away from ‘great battles' will you? You could get hurt."

"Yes, do try and behave yourself, Hermione," her mother said anxiously. "Don't let us down. Remember you're engaged now... you can't act like a child anymore."

Hermione smiled a trifle stiffly. 

"There's no need to worry," she replied.

This would have been the point at which parents and child embraced, but Hermione found herself unwilling to make the first move. Then there was a whistle from the train to indicate that the time to leave was approaching and her mother said quickly, "It's time to go; we can't let the train leave without us, can we Richard?"

"No, we can't," her father said jovially. 

Her mother gave Hermione a quick, bright smile then hurried into the train, her father giving her a last nod before following his wife.

"Goodbye, Hermione!" she heard Neville call to her from a nearby window on the train and Hermione waved, stepping back and away from the crowds of people hastening onto the train. She felt oddly bereft to be left on the platform, to be waving goodbye to her friends. She was pleased though to see the last of Draco, who had slouched onto the train in a sullen mood. Once everyone was on board the train gave a final whistle and pulled away from the station.

Within minutes the train was a rapidly shrinking dot in the distance and then it was gone, leaving the platform empty but for Hermione and Hagrid (who had sniffled and waved vigorously at the receding train).

Hagrid blew his nose with a loud ‘honk' and then peered down at her.

"I hate seein' students leave ‘n such, but I'm glad yer staying on Hermione, ‘n Harry too. Best wishes ter yeh and the professor... I knew there was somethin' between the two of yeh that day of that snow fight. Never thought t'would go far but I was wrong, I was."

Hermione couldn't help but turn pink at the memory of that snowball fight which had led to both her and Severus lying on the snow, kissing for the first time.

"Thanks, Hagrid," she said softly wishing there was a way she could repay him for all the kindnesses he had shown to her over the years. Then she paused... there was one thing she could do. 

"Hagrid, do you want me to Apparate us both to Hogwarts? It will save time."

The half-giant blinked and peered down at her bracelet of which he had heard interesting things about. He didn't trust Slytherin artefacts but if a clever witch like young Hermione was willing to trust it, then he would too.

"That's kind of yeh, Hermione," he said gruffly. "Fine by me. Can yeh take me back to me hut? Babies need feedin'."

Hermione decided not to ask what kind of ‘babies' he was referring to and taking his arm, Apparated them both to the clearing outside Hagrid's hut.

Hagrid looked around in surprise and then beamed down at her. 

"Thanks, Hermione. How ‘bout I put onna pot of tea for us?"

"Perhaps another time," Hermione said with a smile.

Hagrid nodded cheerfully down at her and then lumbered into his hut.

Hermione turned and walked away. Only a few hours ago, Hogwarts had been filled with a multitude of people, but now that the students had departed, quietness lay like a blanket over the ancient castle. Hermione's footsteps sounded unnaturally loud as she walked over the cobblestones of the main courtyard and up to the steps that led inside. 

She could have easily Apparated into the Gryffindor Tower but was reluctant to use the bracelet in the place of walking all the time - her parents had always advocated the benefits of exercise as well as a healthy diet. Her parents… she wished that she could have been the right kind of daughter for them. But attempting to be that perfect daughter would have meant giving up what she truly was.

She thought of the conflict Severus had had with his parents - his father especially - in the effort to be himself. She felt a fresh surge of guilt over the way she had been harsh to Severus before - he had only wanted to comfort her in his own way as she had tried to comfort him after his father had disowned him. No doubt he had withdrawn to the dungeons by now. The sooner she went down there, the sooner she would be able to make amends.

All was quiet within Hogwarts, rays of sunshine casting a warm, gentle light upon the young woman in her formal black robes as she hurried up the marble stairs. Once she reached the entrance to the Gryffindor Tower, the Pink Lady looked at her fondly. 

"Password, my dear. It will be sad to see you leave my tower like the others."

Touched, Hermione smiled at the portrait. 

" ‘Coconut Ice'. Thanks, I will miss you too," she said sincerely.

The door opened and she walked through and into the common room. She came to an abrupt stop when she saw the tall figure of Severus standing in front of the empty fireplace, who turned to look at her with glinting eyes. It was disconcerting in a way to see him in here for the first time within the homely comfort of her common room, his dark robes pooling over the worn carpet like ink.

"How did you get in?" she said in a startled tone before she flushed. Of course, the Heads of the various houses would have passwords to override the current ones to the towers in case of emergencies.

Severus raised an eyebrow. 

"Through the door, as one does," he said sardonically, watching her.

"You would have an override password, of course - I'm sorry for what I said before," Hermione said repentantly and going up to Severus she embraced him. "I didn't mean to hurt you."

Severus did not move for a moment but then relented, putting an arm around her waist and holding her warm body against him. Hermione's harsh words earlier had stung him, with the all too familiar feeling of being rejected rising up within him.

"Did you think I would not understand?" he said levelly.

"It wasn't that... I was upset at the time," Hermione admitted.

"Obviously, but do not shut me out again, Hermione," he asserted and she heard a hint of pain underneath that he couldn't quite hide.

"I won't," she promised, laying her head against his chest.

"Now, I believe that you owe me an answer. What had your parents said to you?" he inquired softly.

Hermione hesitated and for a moment there was a lump in her throat. When she spoke it seemed to Severus that it came from far away. "I'm a ‘weirdo' to them."

She felt his cool, strong hand tilt her chin so that she looked up at his narrowed eyes. 

"Do you think you are a weirdo, then?" he demanded.

"No, of course not," Hermione said, startled.

"Would you call me or any of your friends a weirdo?" he continued.

"No," Hermione said vehemently. "Having powers doesn't make us less human. But the way my parents looked at me - it hurt," she said quietly.

Without words, Severus effortlessly picked her up in his arms and then sat down in one of the over-stuffed chairs, feeling a wave of protectiveness sweep over him as he held the sad Hermione close to him.

"Both of us are not fortunate in the parents we have, it seems, but we are not our parents. Remember that," he said softly though he was angry at the insensitivity of her parents. Perhaps it had been well that she had not told him before for he would have had a few uncivil words with them. Hermione nodded and snuggled against him.

"I love you, Severus," she whispered. "What would I do without you?"

The words came easily for once to his mouth. 

"I love you too, Hermione. And what would I do without my pesky Gryffindor, hmm?" he murmured against her hair. "You brighten my day just by being in it."

When Hermione turned her face to his and kissed him tenderly, he returned the kiss with equal tenderness then deepened it, cupping her face with a hand.

When they drew apart he said, "I think we have been here long enough," he observed. 

Hermione glanced around the common room. 

"Yes, it's time to go," she said with a hint of wistfulness in her voice.

Severus could not say that the design of the common room was to his tastes (being obviously designed by idealistic, glory-hunting Gryffindors), but looking through her eyes for a moment, he could see how it would appeal to her.

"Does this mean you are not looking forward to residing with me?" he questioned, though there was a gleam in his eyes. "Truly, you wound me."

Hermione smiled and kissed him quickly. 

"Yes, I do. I am looking forward to it," she said firmly. In fact, I'm packed and ready," she said, waving towards her bag.

"With cat, I see," Severus observed, looking at her over-sized ginger cat who had been eyeing him closely as if it wasn't sure if Severus was a friend or foe.

"You don't mind, do you?" Hermione said eagerly. "He's house-trained and everything."

"Very well," Severus conceded with a sigh. "As long as he doesn't yowl at 5 am in the morning."

"Of course not!" she said indignantly. 

She got up and then knelt down beside her bag, retrieving a tiny bag from within it that when restored to its right size, contained a travelling container for her cat. At Severus' raised eyebrow she explained that unfortunately Apparating didn't agree with Crookshanks, remembering the once time she had tried as an experiment. Her cat had promptly gone underneath her bed afterwards, hissing and spitting when she had tried to console him.

Once her cat was in the container she picked it up as well as her bag, and taking a last glance around the common room lifted her chin and smiled at her fiancée. 

"Let's go," she said softly.

Once they had both left the tower, Hermione was acutely aware that a phase of her life had ended and she let it go with gentleness. Life from now on for her and Severus could surely only be described as interesting.

"You know, we should have a holiday," Hermione mused as they walked down the stairs.

"It is the end of the year. The students have left." 

There was the unspoken implication of ‘thank God' in that last remark. 

"Is there a part of this that does not indicate ‘holiday' to you?" Severus said dryly to her, concealing the fact from Hermione that when he looked sideways at her, he was thinking 'mine, mine, all mine!'

"What I meant was a holiday away from Hogwarts," Hermione explained. "Not right now, of course, but later on. There's plenty of time before the new school year starts." 

After what they had been through she was definitely feeling the need for both of them to get away for a while.

"In the Muggle world, you mean? I try and avoid those kind of holidays," Severus said warily as they crossed the Entrance Hall to the staircase that led down into his domain. End of year holidays for him usually meant he could spend the time in the peace and quiet of his dungeons, or at his own place. 

The thought came to him that he had never shown her his own private home - it was not as ostentatious as Hogwarts but it suited his purposes. He found he liked the idea of showing her around his home, Hermione adding her own touch as indeed he was curious as to how his living spaces would reflect her presence in them from now on. But please, he thought with some wariness, don't let her cat be one that shed hair all over the furniture.

"I'm sure you would like it if we went together," Hermione said with a hint of wistfulness. "Just think of all the places we could go and see."

"The various barbarities of Western civilisation, you mean?" he said dryly.

"I meant places like libraries, museums, galleries and movie theatres," she said with a smile. She could easily see him wearing a long, elegant coat over his shirt and trousers (convincing him to do this would be interesting).

"Movie theatres? I have never felt the urge to see one of those moving pictures, thank you."

"I'm sure you'd enjoy it," Hermione said firmly.

"Hmph," he said.

By now they had passed into his office and they stopped at the door that led into his quarters. He paused to look down at her. 

"Perhaps there is merit in what you say, Hermione," he said grudgingly and couldn't help but smile at the cheerful look in her eyes.

"As always, you are determined to turn my life upside down," he said softly as he opened the door.

"But for now… welcome home."

TBC


	37. Epilogue

Four years later…

"You will wear the carpet out at this rate if you are not careful," Remus observed gently as he sipped from his cup of tea.

The object of this talk, Severus, who was currently pacing the carpet of his sitting room in some agitation, his black robes flying about him like wings, paused to glare at Remus.

"I do not give a damn about the carpet!" he hissed.

Harry, who was sitting somewhat uncomfortably on the couch besides Remus, coughed. 

"I'm sure Hermione will be all right, Professor," he said diplomatically.

The Potions master turned his head to glower at Harry but at the sound of another cry from the interior of his quarter, his shoulders slumped and he sat ungracefully in a chair. Like any man facing the imminent birth of his first child he was reacting in a typical way. Stressfully.

"What if something's wrong?" Severus whispered to the room at large, his face looking pale. 

For all their powers, there were still times when witches died in childbirth, and to lose Hermione would destroy him. It was that simple. It was impossible to be sour at times when one had a vibrant, cheerful young wife such as Hermione sitting beside him at meals, always keen to discuss new developments in magic and their work. He had even developed a tolerance towards that cat of hers, even though it preferred his chair as the Perfect Place To Sleep And Shed Hair.

Hermione had become an apprentice to be proud of as well as a wife, and several experiments in their shared laboratory she had initiated had produced results he had been able to incorporate into his classes. In time perhaps she would even be able to be a potions teacher in her own right with the necessary qualifications under her belt.

"I'm sure everything will be fine," Remus said comfortingly, unoffended by his colleague's previous outburst. "You know Madam Pomfrey will have everything under control."

Severus had to admit that Remus was right on that point. Earlier that morning, when Hermione had turned a strained face to him, her hand on her swollen belly as she said, "Get Madame Pomfrey… please," he had ordered the nearest student to bring the nurse down here as quick as possible while he helped Hermione into their bedroom. 

Once the capable nurse had arrived down in their quarters with a bulging bag, she had briskly shooed him out of the way as if he was an errant student (he had found himself obeying without a fuss).

Inevitably, the news that Hermione was about to give birth had spread, and to tell the truth he had felt some lessening of stress when Remus and Potter had come down, Potter looking slightly awkward but willing to offer support where needed. But Severus had never felt so helpless in his life as he did now, for all he could do now was wait. She-they-were going to have a baby.

Two years ago in the warm depths of night in their bed, Hermione had shyly whispered to him of her wish to bear their child. Though he was at first taken aback he had found his heart softening at the thought of a child with her eyes (but hopefully not with his nose). They were not a rich couple, but they had enough to get by and there were enough galleons in their savings to provide for an extra but welcome mouth at their table.

Matters had not been as easy as that as Hermione to her sorrow had found it hard to conceive. Severus had consoled her as best as he could... it would not be the end of the world if they had no children, he had told her. It was more than enough for him that she was the companion of his days, the lover of his nights.

However, fortune had eventually smiled upon them and Hermione had conceived. This meant that a portion of his time from then had been devoted to brewing potions to combat her morning sickness and mood swings (he had though, been unable to deal with Hermione's sudden craving for fried onion sandwiches that she ate with gusto, especially at night). Nothing in his life had prepared him for the mixture of emotion he had felt at one time when he had gently touched Hermione's rounded belly and had felt the life within kick against his hand.

"I'm sure he, or she, will be on the Gryffindor Quidditch team one day," Hermione had said with a sparkle in her eyes, though she had winced slightly from her baby's kick.

"Are you suggesting that a child of mine will be a Gryffindor?" he had said in a voice of silky menace but with a gleam in his eyes.

"Why not?" Hermione had retorted smartly. "The chances are fifty / fifty that he or she could be a Gryffindor, and I doubt with our temperaments that Hufflepuff would be the house," she added ruefully.

Severus had to agree with that... he certainly could not imagine any child of theirs being in a house such as Hufflepuff! Certainly he had hopes that his child would be in Slytherin, but at the end of the day it would be up to the child to discover which house it was best suited for. 

Certainly his father had ruthlessly steered him down the path that led to Slytherin, but he would not follow his father's example. His father… as time went on, and disapproval from fellow Slytherins at his marriage to one such as Hermione had changed to reluctant tolerance and even some envy at his ‘luck', the looks his father had occasionally granted him had become successively sour at meetings of the Slytherin Council. 

Especially at the last meeting, when grudging good wishes had been given to him for his expecting wife. If his father had expected him to come and beg forgiveness then he was doomed to disappointment, for Severus would never do so or ask for a single galleon from his parents.

Ironically, when news ‘leaked' from his parents that he had been disowned, it was seen by some people, including students from Hogwarts, that it was a grand and romantic gesture on Severus' part to be with Hermione in the face of his family's disapproval. It had galled him immensely to be seen as someone ‘romantic' and he had said so to Hermione in exasperation. However, she had pointed out with a twinkle in her eyes, that if people saw him as someone who had swept her off her feet to whisper sweet nothings in her ear then that was fine by her, wretched wife that she was!

Looking at Professor Snape, Harry could understand his bad temper... it operated from a sense of frustration and worry that Harry shared. Only the lightest of spells could be used to aid the birthing process, for the use of powerful magic at those times could be fatal to the vulnerable child. 

Harry had found himself sharing Hermione's happiness at the news that she was going to have a child, with Hermione and Lavender taking several opportunities to go and ‘shop for the baby'. 

"How many toys does a baby need for Merlin's sake?" Severus had grumbled to him.

In the time following Harry's graduation, Professor Snape had started treating him as an actual person and not a disliked reminder of his father James. While he and the Potions master would never be friends, they had grown to have a grudging respect for the other and at times even have a civil conversation.

Since becoming the Headmaster's apprentice, Harry had felt as though this was something he had always been meant for as he absorbed more every day of what went on at Hogwarts and the things that went on behind the scenes. It was disconcerting though that Dumbledore was starting to look somewhat frail around the edges these days, as if it was only willpower that kept him going.

After Sirius had been restored to his human form, he had grimly told Hermione that "she had made her bed and now she could lie on it," and then ignored her as much as possible. However, as time went on, Harry found himself the recipient of Sirius's occasional irritated rants over how it was that Hermione and Severus seemed to actually have an enjoyable marriage.

Certainly the faculty had been surprised the first time Hermione and Severus had actually gone away on holiday together and when they had returned he had shown signs of being out in the sun for a lengthy time. For some reason too, every winter after the first snow they would both go down to the side of the lake and engage in a take-no-prisoners snow fight which, Harry reflected, served to reduce the new first-years automatic terror of the Potions master. It was hard to fear him when he showed he was actually able to have fun occasionally.

Hermione had worked right up to her last month, up to when a combination of orders from her husband to rest and her weariness ("Honestly Harry, I feel like an elephant,") had led her to spend her time relaxing in a private courtyard nearby or on a daybed here in her sitting room.

Harry glanced around. The chairs and sofa in the spacious sitting room did not really encourage you to loll around on them but they were softened with cushions and the daybed looked comfortable, with a nearby bookcase overflowing with books and magazines. There were two other doors in the sitting room, one that led to the kitchen/dining area & study and the other presumably led to their bedroom. 

A bowl of dark rose petals that gave off a heady smell was on a small table along with a framed photo of Hermione and the Professor on their wedding day. Hermione in her bridal finery was waving from the photo, while Severus was trying to look as if it was beneath him to appear happy on his wedding day, failing when Hermione leaned up and kissed his cheek.

Severus found himself staring at the wedding photo as well and found himself remembering back to the day he and Hermione had wed not many months after they had become engaged.

The event had taken place in a chapel that was on the grounds of Hogwarts. It was a place associated with death, for the vaults far below held the remains of wizards who had resided at Hogwarts and former students who had had fond memories of their old school. It was also a place associated with life, for it was where local wizards came to get married, attracted by the sense of peace within that seemed to emanate from its stone walls.

Built with the same kind of stones as Hogwarts, the walls had gleamed from the light of the beeswax candles in candelabra. It had been a small, private ceremony, for neither of them had wanted undue fuss. Hermione's apprehensive parents had been there, still accustoming themselves to have a wizard for a son-in-law. Certainly it had been an eye-opener for Severus to have dinner at the home of Hermione's parents, who had been visibly nervous in their efforts not to offend the two wizards in their house. It was a mystery to Severus as to how Muggles could cope with the various machines and gadgets in their homes.

Hermione had looked radiant in her beautiful white silk-and-lace gown - Lavender had surprised them both by providing a design for the gown that actually looked good - and a crown of white flowers that had made her look like a queen. He had worn his usual black frock coat and trousers, though his outer robes had been a dark forest green with discreet silver embroidery at the edges. 

Hermione had spoken her vows in a clear, determined voice though there had been a faint blush on her cheeks. As for him, he had felt that the powerful spells he had voiced in the past paled into significance beside the words he uttered then that had bound them close together, forever.

Hermione's friends had turned up to provide surprisingly sincere support for their friend, though Weasley had for some reason happened to be out of town at the time. What a shame, Severus had insincerely thought to himself. Afterwards, they had spent their honeymoon in his other home (which Hermione had already ‘renovated') and had lost themselves in each other.

Severus was recalled to the present when suddenly there was the outraged cry of a baby clearly angry at being brought into the world. Severus stood abruptly; his head turned towards the bedroom door and his eyes were all wide dark pupils. He was only peripherally aware of Remus and Harry having stood as well, both of them hovering in nervous anticipation.

Severus could not move, nor could he breathe. He felt that once he went through that door he would be forever changed. After a little while, the door clicked open and Madame Pomfrey came out looking haggard, though a smile of weary pride was upon her face.

"My work is done… you have a daughter, Severus," the capable nurse said kindly. "Come and see."

"A daughter," Severus whispered, feeling a wave of joy rush through him that was so intense it was almost like pain, feeling slightly dazed as he accepted the warm congratulations from the two other men. He had a little girl... it did not matter in the end that it was not a son as he had secretly hoped for.

"Hermione... is she all right?" he asked urgently, brushing away a strand of black hair from his face as he found his feet and advanced towards Madame Pomfrey.

"She's fine, but she needs lots of rest, mind," the nurse said, frowning slightly. "I've told her that she isn't to exert herself in these early days and I expect you to see that she doesn't."

He wasn't a complete ogre, Severus thought in irritation. It wasn't as if he would order Hermione to get back to her studies tomorrow. But he merely nodded his head swiftly and when the nurse stood aside he went into the bedroom, his hands moving restlessly.

Hermione had never felt so weary in her life, but though she was tired she filled with a sense of amazement as she looked down at the baby girl she was holding, clean and snug in a little cream shawl. The nurse had restored the bed and herself to a state of cleanliness, and a cup of restorative potion was by her bed - from the way she was feeling, she didn't think she could cope with eating the healing chocolate.

Although the bright blue gaze of her daughter was unfocussed she was looking about as if she was determined to absorb everything around her and she had fine, wispy black hair on her head. Certainly she had already demonstrated she had the lungs and temper like her father!

Hermione looked up with a smile when her husband came swiftly into the room, the wizard then pausing and becoming very still when he saw the child in her arms. Severus then approached the bed and sat down on the side with some hesitancy, as if they were both fine china.

"We have - a daughter?" he said huskily, swallowing a few times as if he could not believe the news and what he saw.

"Yes. Isn't she beautiful?" Hermione said softly, holding the baby out to him. Her normally self-assured, formidable husband looked for a moment as if he was unsure what to do, then with slightly trembling hands Severus reached out and took the baby into his arms.

"She is perfect," he whispered after a moment, staring down at his child. It seemed unbelievable that someone like him could have created this miracle with Hermione. When the baby started crying in protest in being away from Hermione, he froze - what could he do? He had no experience with babies after all. 

But when Severus found himself murmuring, "It is all right, little one," his daughter hiccupped and ceased crying, staring up at him fuzzily.

"It looks as though she likes your voice too," Hermione teased him.

"If she is as impertinent as her mother I will have my hands full," he retorted, but then looking at his wife he said, "I cannot adequately describe how I feel - but I do know I will love her with all my heart," he said softly. 

Even in her tiredness and the extra roundness to her curves, she could still make his heart beat faster.

"I know you will," Hermione said simply.

"What is to be her name?" he murmured, gazing down at the now sleeping baby.

Hermione hesitated. 

"I had thought of Isabelle as you know, but now that I look at her, I think Elaine would be better," she admitted.

Severus considered their child for a moment. 

"Yes," he decided. The name felt right. Then he glanced at the door. 

"Harry and Remus are probably wondering what's going on... shall I show them our Elaine before they have kittens?" he said dryly.

Hermione smiled at him warmly. 

"I thought I heard their voices before... yes, go and show them our baby, then." 

She was glad that her friends had come down to support her and that Severus wished to include them both into their circle.

She reflected on how far she and Severus had come together and was glad to remember the wish of her younger self to bring a genuine smile to a cold and bitter Potions master.

FINIS

A/N: Hope you enjoyed my story. :)


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